V/illiams 
Essays  in  Welsh  Literature 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


ESSAYS 


WELSH  LITERATURE 


BY 


J.  DIGAIN    WILLIAMS, 

CAMBRIDGE,    MASS. 


THIRD    THOUSAND. 


l'HHSS   OK 
POWELL    AND    COMPANY, 

I'AMHKIDCK,   MASS. 


ESSAYS 


IN 


WELSH   LITERATURE 


BY 


J.  DIGAIN   WILLIAMS, 


CAMBRIDGE,    MASS. 


THIRD    THOUSAND. 


I'RHSS   OF 

POWELL  AND  COMPANY, 

CAMBRIDGE,  MASS. 


*       *••  -  ■ 


CD 

CO 

en 


PREFACE   TO   FIRST   EDITION. 


The  substance  of  these  pages  was  delivered  at  the  First 
Baptist  Church,  of  Edwardsdale,  and  we  feel  that  no 
apology  is  needed  for  publishing  the  same,  though  it  is  pre- 
sented in  a  very  imperfect  form.  To  have  the  history  of 
*£  the  Bible  amongst  the  most  constant  Bible  reading  people 
in  the  world  must  be  an  interesting  matter  to  all.     The  his- 

tory  of  the   Welsh  magazines  is  a  part  of  the  history  of 

i-J  #   _  

religion  in  Wales,  and  is  important  apart  from  its  literary 

value.     How  the  Welsh  Bible  and  magazines  were  left  out 

of  such  a  work  as  the  "Encyclopedia  Britannica"  we  are 

at  a  loss  to  understand.     We  hope,  however,  that  the  next 

_         edition  of  that  excellent  work  will  include  articles  on  these 
subjects. 

-^  Until  something  better  will  appear,  these  two  essays,  we 

hope,  will  be  of  help  to  those  who  desire  to  know  more  than 
they  do  in  this  respect.  Shall  we  also  hope  that  they  may 
create  that  desire  in  others  who  have  it  not? 

The  article   on  the  First  Welsh  Biblical  Dictionary  is 
given  partly  in  order  to  do  justice  to  the  author  of  that 

iT       book. 

£  J.  D.  W. 


Edwardsdale,  March  28,  18QJ. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2008  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/essaysinwelshlitOOwill 


THE   WELSH    BIBLE. 


The  Scriptures,  or  at  least  parts  of  them,  were  known  to 
the  inhabitants  of  Wales  at  an  early  date,  although  the 
oldest  work  known  was  written  as  late  as  the  middle  of  the 
14th  century.  This  is  not,  however,  a  translation  from  the 
MSS.  It  is  a  metrical  rendering  of  the  work  known  as 
"  Officium  Beatae  Marae,"  Avhich  contains  portions  of  the 
Word  of  God.  The  author  of  this  poetical  translation  was 
Dafydd  ah  Roderic  ab  Madog.  He  was  a  native  of  Flint- 
shire, North  Wales,  a  dignitary  of  St.  Asaph,  and  vicar  of 
Dymeirchion,  Avhere  his  monument  is  to  be  seen  even  to  this 
day.  His  poetical  name  was  "Dafydd  Ddu  o  Hiraddug." 
He  Avas  believed  to  be  a  prophet,  and  was  learned.  He 
flourished  about  1349,  the  year  in  which  Richard  Rolle,  the 
hermit  of  Hampole,  died.  Dafydd  ab  Gwilym,  one  of  the 
best  poets  of  Wales,  was  born  about  this  time. 

We  are  informed  on  good  authority  that  a  translation  of 
the  four  gospels  was  in  the  library  of  the  Cathedral  at  St. 
Asaph  in  the  year  1282,  and  that  it  Avas  considered  old  at 
that  time.  The  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  wrote  to  the 
priests  of  St.  Asaph  authorizing  them  to  carry  the  MS.  with 
them  from  house  to  house,  and  to  read  the  same  for  the 
benefit  of  the  people.  What  became  of  this  copy  is  not 
known.  Some  think  that  Bishop  GokRvell,  who  was  at  St. 
Asaph  about  L558,  but  who  Avas  forced  to  give  up  his 
position  when  Elizabeth  became  Queen  of  England,  took  the 
valuable  volume  with  him  to  Rome.  This  is  very  probable, 
and  the  precious  relic  may  yet  come  to  light. 


—  6  — 

Dr.  Richard  Davies,  who  was  consecrated  Bishop  of  St. 
Asaph  in  1559  or  1560,  tells  us  that  he  saw  a  copy  the  five 
books  of  Moses,  when  he  was  a  boy,  in  the  house  of  an  edu- 
cated uncle  of  his.  "  No  one,"  he  says,  "  seemed  to  value 
the  book,"  a  fact  which  does  not  reflect  great  credit  on  the 
education  of  his  uncle.  Dr.  Davies  argues  that  a  knowledge 
of  the  Scriptures  existed  in  Wales  in  early  times,  and  in 
support  of  his  opinion  refers  to  the  character  of  the  people, 
their  names,  and  their  proverbs. 

Historians  are  of  opinion  that  a  man  named  Thomas 
Llewellyn,  a  native  of  Glamorganshire,  translated  the  Bible 
into  Welsh  about  the  year  1540.  This  translation  was  made, 
we  are  told,  from  the  English  version  of  Tyndale.  About 
the  time  Tyndale  was  forming  his  intentions  of  translating 
the  Bible  into  English,  there  was  born  in  the  North  of 
Wales,  about  eighty  miles  away  from  Little  Sodbury,  a  boy 
who  was  also  called  AVilliam,  who  was  destined  to  perform  for 
the  Welsh  people  a  work  similar  to  that  accomplished  by 
Tyndale  for  the  English  world.  We  cannot  be  certain 
about  the  year  in  which  William  Salesbury  was  born,  and 
each  of  two  villages  in  Denbighshire  claims  to  be  his  birth- 
place. Tradition  goes  in  favor  of  Llanrwst ;  but  a  reference 
in  a  certain  MS.  recently  found,  if  we  may  rely  on  the  words 
of  the  copist,  who  says  that  it  is  the  work  of  William  Sales- 
bury,  goes  in  favor  of  Llansannan.  The  distance,  however, 
between  Llanrwst  and  Llansannan  is  only  about  ten  miles, 
and  since  some  of  his  celebrated  ancestors  lived  not  far  from 
both  places,  each  of  them  may  rightly  claim  a  share  in  the 
production  of  William  Salesbury. 

Llanrwst  is  at  present  a  town  of  about  eight  or  nine  thou- 
sand inhabitants,  and  is  situated  on  the  river  Conway,  which 
parts  Denbigh  from  Carnarvon.     Llansannan  is  a  small  vil- 


—  7  — 

lage  in  the  heart  of  Denbighshire.  I  may  say,  in  the  heart 
of  Denbighshire  in  more  than  one  respect ;  and  should  the 
future  decide  for  Llanrwst  as  the  place  in  which  the  great 
man  was  born,  Llansannan  is  inseparably  connected  with 
him,  for,  without  a  doubt,  he  accomplished  most,  if  not  all, 
of  the  work  by  which  he  is  best  known  in  that  parish.  Yes, 
it  was  there,  in  a  small  room  made  in  the  chimney,  safe  from 
the  violent  storms  of  persecution  ;  in  the  quietness  of  the 
country,  and  that  too,  in  this  case,  converted  into  solitude  by 
means  of  the  slumbering  appearance  of  Hiraethog  mountain 
and  the  murmur  of  the  river  Aled,  that  William  Salesbury 
translated  for  his  countrymen  the  New  Testament  into 
their  own  beautiful  and  dear  language. 

Salesbury  was  a  descendant  of  Adam  de  Salbre,  the  son 
of  the  Duke  of  Bavaria,  who  had  settled  in  Wales  centuries 
before.  His  father's  name  was  Ffoulk  Salesbury,  and  his 
grandfather  was  Thomas  Salesbury,  who  married  Gwenhyfar, 
the  only  daughter  of  Rhys  ap  Einion  Fychan.*  He  re- 
ceived the  rudiments  of  learning  in  his  native  countr}*, 
and  afterwards  entered  the  University  of  Oxford,  where 
other  members  of  the  same  noted  family  had  done  well 
before.  He  entered  either  St.  Alban's  or  Broadgates  Hall.f 
He  was  removed  from  Oxford  to  an  Inn  of  Chancery  in 
London,  from  whence  he  proceeded,  in  all  probability,  to 
Lincoln's  Inn.  He  was  well  up  in  a  dozen  but  one  lan- 
guages.  Fortunately  he  did  not  spend  his  life  in  the  law. 
His  piety,  learning  and  zeal  secured  for  him  the  respect  of 
the  best  and  ablest  men  of  the  principality. 

An  act  of  Parliament  passed  in  the  year  1563  ordered 
that  the  Old  and  N"cw  Testaments,  together  with  the  Book 


*  Welsh  Bibliography  by  Rowland  &  Evans,  page  17. 
\  Williams'  Eminent  Welshmen. 


of  Common  Prayer,  were  to  be  translated  into  Welsh  ; 
the  work  to  be  edited  by  the  Bishops  of  St.  Asaph,  Bangor, 
St.  David's,  Llandaff  and  Hereford.  The  translations  were 
to  be  ready  in  1566,  and  each  Bishop,  in  case  of  neglect, 
was  to  pay  a  fine  of  forty  pounds.  The  work,  however,  was 
not  accomplished.  The  law  did  not  state  who  was  to  take 
care  of  the  work,  and  who  was  to  bear  the  expenses. 
The  Bishops,  in  the  meantime,  prevailed  on  Salesbury  to 
undertake  the  task,  and  the  whole  of  the  New  Testament 
was  printed  in  1567, —  the  year  in  which  Rugby  School 
was  founded,  and  forty-two  years  after  the  appearance 
of  the  English  New  Testament  of  William  Tyndale.  On 
the  back  of  the  title  page  we  find  these  words:  "Imprinted 
at  London,  by  Henry  Denham,  at  the  costes  and  charges 
of  Humfrey  Toy,  dwelling  in  Paules  Churchyarde,  at  the 
sign  of  Helmet,  Gum  privilegio  at,  imprimendum  volum, 
Anno  1567,  Octob  7."  The  mother  of  Humfrey  Toy  was 
a  Welsh  lady,  and  it  was  through  her,  mainly,  that  the 
son  undertook  to  print  the  work  "at  his  own  costes  and 
charges."  The  volume  contains  800  pages,  in  black  letter. 
Should  the  reader  be  informed  elsewhere  that  the  number 
of  pages  is  399,  he  may  get  over  the  difficulty  by  remem- 
bering that  some  give  the  number  of  pages,  and  the  others 
the  number  of  leaves  in  the  book.  What  help  Salesbury 
received  from  the  Bishops  we  cannot  tell;  we  know  that 
only  one  of  them  helped  with  the  translating.  Dr.  Davies 
of  St.  David's  translated  the  First  Epistle  to  Timothy, 
the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  the  Epistle  of  James,  and 
the  two  Epistles  of  Peter.  The  Book  of  Revelation  was 
translated  by  T.  Huet,*  Precentor  of  St.  David's. 


*  Huet  was  from  South  Wales. 


—  9  — 

Salesbury  and  Davies  began  together  a  translation  of 
the  Old  Testament,  but  the}'  disagreed  as  to  the  meaning 
of  one  word,  and  the  work  was  not  proceeded  with.  Be- 
sides being  the  first  to  translate  the  New  Testament  into 
Welsh,  Salesbury  has  the  honor  of  being  the  author  of 
the  first  book  ever  printed  in  the  language,  as  well  as  the 
author  of  the  first  Welsh  Dictionary.  Although  the  trans- 
lation has  been  greatly  improved  by  Morgan  and  Parry, 
we  must  look  upon  Salesbury's  as  the  foundation  of  the  one 
in  use  at  the  present  time.  A  second  edition  of  the  work 
appeared  in  1 849. 

Five  years  after  the  publication  of  Coverdale's  Bible, 
there  was  born  in  the  parish  of  Penmachno  in  Carnar- 
vonshire, about  four  or  five  miles  from  Llanrwst,  another 
boy  who  was  called  William,  who  was  to  perform  a  greater, 
though  not  nobler  work,  than  William  Salesbury.  William 
Morgan  was  born  at  a  place  called  Gwibernant,  which  is 
on  the  borders  of  the  parishes  of  Dolyddelen  and  Pen- 
machno. He  was  educated  at  St.  John's  College,  Cam- 
bridge. ITe  took  his  M.A.  in  1571  ;  B.D.  in  1578,  and  D.D. 
in  1583.  He  accepted  the  vicarage  of  Welshpool,  where 
he  remained  for  three  years,  whence  he  removed  to  Llan- 
rhaiadr,  a  village  situated  on  the  borders  of  Denbighshire 
and  Montgomeryshire.  It  was  here  that  he  accomplished 
the  work  which  has  made  his  name  so  dear  to  his  country- 
men, and  has  won  for  him  the  respect  of  other  nations. 
Morgan  seems  to  have  undertaken  the  work  of  translating 
the  Bible  into  Welsh  of  liis  own  free  will.  He  was  not 
influenced  by  the  Queen,  and  as  far  as  we  can  gather,  the 
Bishops  knew  nothing  of  what  he  was  doing  for  some 
time  after  he  had  commenced    the    work.     lie    was   called 


—  10- 

to  his  task  by  the  "  Spirit  of  truth."  He  remained  at 
Llanrhaiadr  for  ten  years,  but  before  the  appearance  of 
his  translation  he  resigned  his  position  in  favor  of  his  son, 
Evan  Morgan,  who  held  the  vicarage  until  1612.  In  1595 
Morgan  was  made  Bishop  of  Llandaff  by  the  "  express 
command  of  the  Queen."  He  was  removed  to  St.  Asaph 
in  1601,  and  he  died  there  on  the  fourth  of  September, 
1604,  two  hundred  years  before  "The  British  and  Foreign 
Society  "  was  founded  ! 

It  is  said  that  Morgan  had  some  difficulty,  even  with  his 
own  parishioners,  when  engaged  in  his  work  of  translat- 
ing. It  was  said  that  he  was  not  fit  for  the  task ;  stories 
were  invented  and  circulated  concerning  him,  until  at  last 
he  had  to  appear  before  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury. 
Dr.  Whitgift  at  once  perceived  his  ability  and  advised 
him  to  go  on  with  the  work.  It  is  said  that  the  Arch- 
bishop asked  him  if  he  knew  Welsh  as  well  as  he  knew 
Hebrew!  We  are  expressly  told  by  Morgan  that,  were 
it  not  for  Dr.  Whitgift,  the  work  would  not  have  been 
proceeded  with  "  owing  to  the  difficulty  of  the  task,  and 
the  greatness  of  the  expense." 

We  are  struck  by  the  fact  that  all  the  men  who  are  emi- 
nent on  account  of  service  rendered  in  giving  their  country- 
men the  Bible  in  their  own  language,  were,  with  one  or 
two  exceptions,  natives  of  three  or  four  countries  in  North 
Wales.  Four  of  them  were  from  Denbighshire,  and  two  of 
the  four  were  born  in  the  same  town  ;  four  more  were  from 
Carnarvonshire,  and  two  of  these  again  were  from  the  same 
spot.  Their  names  even  strike  us;  the  first  name  of  each  of 
three  of  them  was  William  and  three  more  had  each  the 
name  of  Richard.  Six  of  them  were  trained  at  Cambridge, 
four  at  least    at  Oxford,  and  one  of  them  studied  at  both 


—  11  — 

Universities ;  four  of  them  again  were  Bishops  of  St.  Asaph. 
However,  if  the  people  of  South  Wales  are  almost  deprived 
of  any  share  in  the  work  of  translating  the  Bible,  great  praise 
is  due  to  them  for  their  efforts  to  spread  the  truth  far  and 
wide,  as  we  shall  see  further  on.  It  was  through  the  instru- 
mentality of  preachers  from  the  South,  such  as  Vavasor 
Powell  and  Hywel  Harries,  that  the  North  of  Wales  was 
brought  to  "a  knowledge  of  the  truth." 

Six  of  the  men  above  referred  to  are  mentioned  by 
Morgan  as  being  his  helpers.  Everyone  who  had  anything 
to  do  with  such  a  work  as  this  ought  to  have  full  credit 
for  the  share  he  did.  We  cannot,  however,  do  justice  to 
them,  even  if  we  were  qualified  for  the  task,  owing  to  the 
absence  of  knowledge  of  the  special  part  each  one  of  them 
had  in  the  enterprise.  We  shall,  therefore,  give  the  leading 
facts  of  their  lives. 

Dr.  Hugh  Bellot  was  the  second  son  of  Thomas  Bellot, 
Esq  ,  of  Great  Moreton,  Cheshire.  He  was  educated  at 
Cambridge.  He  took  his  B.A.  degree  in  1503,  and  that  of 
M.A.  in  15G7,  and  was  created  D.D.  in  1579.  In  1570 
he  was  one  of  the  proctors  of  the  University.  In  1584  he 
obtained  the  rectory  of  Caerwys,  Flintshire,  and  the  vicar- 
age of  Gresford,  Denbighshire.  He  was  made  Bishop  of 
Bangor  in  1585  ami  ten  years  later  was  removed  to  the 
Bishopric  of  Chester.  He  is  mentioned  as  a  great  persecutor 
of  the  Catholics. 

Bellot  was  very  intimate  with  Dr.  Gabriel  Goodman,  who 
was  born  at  Ruthin,  Denbighshire,  in  the  year  1528. 

Goodman  was  the  son  of  Edward  Goodman,  who  was 
:i  merchant,  ami  who  seems  to  have  been  the  first  of  the 
family  to  take  the  name  Goodman.     It  appears,  indeed,  thai 


—  12  — 

Edward  had  the  name  given  to  him  by  his  associates  on 
account  of  his  excellent  character.  The  name  did  not  suffer 
any  because  of  the  son,  for  he  was  indeed  an  exceptionally 
good  man  ;  had  he  been  named  when  names  were  keys  to 
characters,  who  knows  but  that  he  would  have  been  called 
Gabriel  Goodman,  for  he  was  certainly  an  angel  of  a  man. 
Gabriel  was  sent  to  Cambridge  when  about  fourteen  years  of 
age,  and  took  his  M.A.  degree  when  he  was  about  twenty- 
one,  and  was  a  fellow  of  Jesus  College.  In  1561  Goodman 
was  made  Dean  of  Westminster,  which  position  he  held  for 
about  forty  years.  He  was  a  sound  scholar  and  translated 
the  First  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  in  the  Bishop's  Bible. 
He  founded  a  Grammar  School,  and  other  charitable  insti- 
tutions at  Ruthin.  He  died  on  the  17th  of  June,  1601,  in 
his  seventy-third  year.  When  in  London,  superintending 
the  printing  of  the  Bible,  Dr.  Morgan  was  the  guest  of  Dean 
Goodman,  and  we  may  naturally  suppose  that  he  gave  him 
pecuniary  and  literary  aid. 

Dr.  David  Powell,  who  was  "a  learned  divine  and  emi- 
nent antiquary,"  was  born  in  Denbighshire  about  1552.  He 
was  sent  to  Oxford  when  he  was  sixteen  and  took  his  M.A. 
there  in  1576.  He  was  made  vicar  of  Ruabon,  Denbighshh-e, 
in  1570,  and  he  died  there  in  1598.  His  son  Samuel,  who 
was  one  of  twelve  children,  six  of  them  being  daughters, 
followed  his  father  at  Ruabon.  Ruabon  is  not  far  from 
Llanrhaiadr,  and  Morgan,  in  all  probability  received  sub- 
stantial aid  from  Powell. 

Dr.  William  Hughes,  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph,  "gave  as- 
sistance by  the  loan  of  books  and  examination  of  the  work."  * 
Dr.  Hughes  was  the  son   of  Hugh  ap  Cynric,  who  was  a 


*  Dictionary  of  National  Biography. 


—  13  — 

descendant  of  one  of  the  fifteen  tribes  of  Gwynedd.  His 
mother's  name  was  Gwenllian.  He  was  born  in  Carnarvon- 
shire, and  was  trained  at  Oxford  and  Cambridge.  Pie  was 
made  vicar  of  Llysfaen  in  his  native  county,  and  in  1573  he 
was  made  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph.  The  accounts  we  get  of  him 
show  him  to  be  a  selfish  man  to  say  the  least.  We  must  not 
forget,  nevertheless,  the  good  he  did. 

Another  helper  Avas  Dr.  Richard  Vaughan,  who  was 
from  the  same  part  of  Carnarvonshire  as  Dr.  Hughes. 
Yaughan  received  his  training  at  St.  John's  College,  Cam- 
bridge, of  which  he  was  a  fellow.  He  was  Prebendary  of 
Holborn,  and  Archdeacon  of  Middlesex,  and  was  consecrated 
Bishop  of  Bangor  in  1595  ;  he  was  removed  to  Chester  in 
1597,  and  to  London  in  1604.  According  to  some  Dr.  John 
Davies,  of  Mallwyd,  Merionethshire,  also  gave  assistance. 
Dr.  John  Davis  was  first  educated  by  Morgan.  Some  sur- 
mise that  Dr.  Parry  gave  some  assistance,  although  he  was 
only  twenty-eight  years  of  age  at  the  time  the  translation 
was  issued. 

The  last  of  this  noble  band  of  men  who  shall  come 
under  consideration  was  Archdeacon  Prys  of  Merionethshire. 
He  was  born  in  that  county  at  a  farm  house  called  Gerddi 
Bluog  about  the  year  1541.  When  the  writer  visited  the 
place  he  was  shown  an  old  eight-day  clock  which  was  the 
property  of  Edmund  Prys  at  one  time,  but  which  is  now  as 
silent  as  the  tongue  of  the  sweet  singer  of  Psalms.  Prys  was 
the  son  of  a  cousin  of  Morgan  and  was  educated  at  St. 
John's  College,  Cambridge.  He  was  made  Archdeacon  of 
Merioneth  in  1576,  and  Canon  of  St.  Asaph  in  1602.  He 
composed  a  beautiful  metrical  version  of  the  Psalms.  It  is 
said  that  his  practice  was  to  prepare  for  each  Sunday  a 
Psalm  which  was  sung  in  church.     It  is  natural  to  suppose 


—  14  — 

that  he  gave  considerable  help  in  translating  the  Psalms. 
The  sweetness  and  melody  of  the  Welsh  Psalms  are  per- 
haps the  fruits  of  his  genius,  just  as  the  sweetness  of  the 
English  Bible  is  due  in  large  part  to  Coverdale.  Prys  died, 
according  to  some,  in  the  year  1621,  but  others  say  it  was 
1623  or  1624.  lie  was  buried  at  Maentwfog,  but,  like  the 
resting  place  of  many  a  great  man,  the  spot  where  he  lies 
is  not  known. 

Morgan's  Bible  was  printed  in  London  by  Christopher 
and  Barker,  Paternoster  Row,  in  1588,  the  year  in  which  the 
Spanish  Armada  was  defeated.  It  is  a  large  volume  in  black 
letter  containing  the  Apocryphal  books  as  well  as  the  Old 
and  New  Testaments.  The  contents  of  every  chapter  is 
given  and  the  whole  is  divided  into  verses,  with  some  mar- 
ginal notes.  It  contains  over  one  thousand  pages  but  only 
the  leaves  are  numbered.  At  the  beginning  of  the  volume 
there  is  a  Latin  letter  addressed  to  the  Queen.  Morgan,  it 
seems,  revised  the  New  Testament  afterwards,  and  had  it 
ready  for  publication  when  he  died,  in  1604.  As  far  as  we 
have  been  able  to  see  no  use  was  made  of  this. 

In  1620  another  edition  of  the  whole  Bible  was  printed 
in  London  by  "Norton  and  Bill,  printers  to  his  Majesty." 
This  is  called  "  Dr.  Parry's  Bible,"  as  he  corrected  some  of 
the  mistakes  in  that  of  Morgan,  although  a  few  changes  for 
the  worse  were  made.  This  is  a  large  volume,  similar  in 
arrangement  to  the  edition  of  1588.  Dr.  John  Davies,  already 
referred  to,  assisted  Parry  in  this  work.  Since  hardly  suf- 
ficient copies  were  printed  in  1588,  so  that  each  parish  in 
the  principality  could  obtain  one,  Bibles  must  have  been  very 
scarce  in  thirty-two  years  after,  especially  when  we  remem- 
ber that  many  of  them  were  kept  in  damp  churches  from 
one  end  of  the  year  to  the  other.     It  seems  that  Parry,  like 


—15  — 

Morgan,  undertook  the  work  of  his  own  free  will  without 
the  support  of  the  King  and  Parliament. 

Dr.  Parry's  Bible  is  the  one  in  use  at  the  present  time, 
and  upon  the  whole  it  is  an  excellent  translation.  The  trans- 
lation, no  doubt,  is  sometimes  wrong  and  doubtful.  There 
are  several  passages  in  the  Revised  English  Testament  which 
more  correctly  represent  the  original  than  the  Welsh  ren- 
derings of  the  same,  but  we  must  not  forget  that  at  least 
one-third  of  the  neAv  renderings  in  the  English  Testament 
were  in  the  Welsh  one  from  the  time  of  Dr.  Parry.  Simi- 
larity between  the  verbs  is,  perhaps,  one  of  the  greatest 
defects  of  the  Welsh  translation  of  the  New  Testament. 
The  difference  between  the  perfect  and  imperfect  tenses, 
for  instance,  is  not,  according  to  the  opinions  of  the  best 
scholars,  satisfactorily  worked  out.  We  Welsh  people  pro- 
fess to  be  patriotic  and  religious,  and  we  are  so,  no  doubt, 
especially  in  sentiment ;  but  if  our  patriotism  and  religion  are 
to  be  measured  by  our  practical  admiration  of  our  heroes, 
which  is  by  no  means  a  low  standard,  we  have  no  reason  to 
boast.  And  if  we  are  too  poor  to  erect  statues  in  honor  of 
them,  and  if  our  poets  and  historians  will  not  take  the  trouble 
necessary  to  immortalize  them,  let  us  strive  to  understand 
and  live  the  truths  at  which  they  worked  so  hard  so  that 
we  might  have  light.  These  great  men, —  great  in  religion, 
learning  and  courage,  have  placed  us  under  lasting  obli- 
gations to  them. 

In  the  year  1630  the  whole  Bible  was  printed  for  the 
third  time.  This,  however,  was  an  edition  for  the  people. 
The  former  Bibles  were  "  princes  among  books,"  even  if  we 
take  nothing  but  their  sizes  into  account.  This  made  them 
inconvenient  for  common  use.  But  what  was  still  worse  was 
the  fact  that  they  were  so  dear.     It  was  simply  a  matter  of 


—  16  — 

impossibility  for  the  people  at  large  to  possess  a  copy, 
even  if  sufficient  copies  had  been  printed.  A  poor  man 
could  hardly  procure  a  copy  with  the  earnings  of  a  month. 
The  edition  of  1630  was  meant  for  the  poor  people.  This, 
like  the  former  editions,  was  printed  in  London.  It  was 
issued  from  the  press  of  "  Robert  Barker,  Printer  to  his 
Majesty  the  King,"  and  the  "  assigns  of  John  Bill  Anno 
Dom.  1630."  The  honor  of  giving  the  Bible  to  the  poor 
people  of  Wales  belongs  to  two  gentlemen  who  were  alder- 
men in  the  City  of  London.  They  were  Mr.  Rowland 
Heylyn  and  Sir  Thomas  Middleton.  These  men  were  both 
of  noted  families.  Sir  Thomas  Middleton  was  the  son  of 
Richard  Middleton,  of  Waenynog,  Denbighshire.  There 
have  been  four  of  the  family  of  the  same  name,  viz. :  Sir 
Thomas  Middleton.  The  first  two  were  knights  and  the 
other  two  were  baronets.  The  Sir  Thomas  under  con- 
sideration was  the  first  of  that  name  and  the  founder  of 
the  Middletons  of  Chirk  Castle,  Denbighshire.  He  had 
three  brothers,  Richard,  Simon,  and  William.  William  was 
an  excellent  poet  and  was  known  as  Gwilym  Canoldref. 
Canoldref  is  the  Welsh  for  Middleton,  that  is,  Middletown. 
Sir  Thomas  was  a  merchant  in  London  and  was  Lord  Mayor 
of  the  City.  Heylyn  was  a  native  of  Salop.  There  is  a 
small  place  in  that  county  known  as  Pentref  Heylyn.  Dr. 
Richard  Heylyn,  who  was  sometime  canon  of  Christ  Church, 
Oxford,  was  of  the  same  family.  Some  seem  to  think  that 
Heylyn  had  more  than  anybody  else  to  do  with  the  bringing 
out  of  this  edition,  while  others  speak  of  Middleton  as 
though  he  were  the  sole  instrument  in  bringing  "  the  gospel 
to  the  poor "  at  this  time.  But  the  probability  is  that  both 
had  a  share  in  this  noble  work.  And  it  is  far  better  for  us 
to  make  the  unusual  mistake  of  being  too  lavish  with  our 


—  17  — 

praise  than  to  be  too  sparing  with  it.  What  we  must  mind 
is  not  to  give  it  to  the  wrong  man  when  we  have  the  means 
of  knowing  better. 

In  the  year  1647  the  New  Testament  was  issued  alone, 
a  second  edition  following  in  a  very  short  time  after  the 
appearance  of  the  first.  It  had  also  been  issued  in  1641  and 
164'2.  It  is  thought  that  Mr.  Walter  Caradoc  had  more  to 
do  with  these  editions  than  anybody  else.  Caradoc  was  in 
London  at  this  time.  He  was  a  native  of  Monmouthshire. 
It  is  thought  that  he  was  trained  at  Oxford,  and  that  he  left 
before  he  proceeded  to  his  degree.  Wood  does  not  mention 
his  name.  He  was  for  sometime  curate  at  Cardiff,  South 
Wales,  and  he  held  a  similar  position  at  Wrexham  in  the 
North.  He  was  more  than  once  prevented  to  preach  as  he 
was  not  willing  to  conform  with  certain  vicious  rules  and 
practices.  He  is  called  a  "  dissenter  by  compulsion."  He 
travelled  and  preached  much,  and  died  a  minister  of  the 
Established  Church. 

By  this  time  a  change  for  the  better  had  come  over  the 
principality.  "  An  act  for  the  better  propogation  of  the 
gospel  in  Wales"  had  been  passed,  and  a  number  of  earnest 
men  took  advantage  of  it  and  did  their  utmost  to  spread 
the  knowledge  of  God's  Word ;  yet  the  people  were  ex- 
tremely superstitious  and  ignorant ;  morality  was  low,  and 
only  one  here  and  there  could  read  his  Bible.  The  power 
of  the  church  at  large.,  I  mean  power  for  good,  was  simply 
nil.  In  the  year  1654  the  whole  Bible  was  printed  for  the 
fourth  time.  The  printer  was  James  Flesher,  who  was  con- 
demned with  Thomas  Brewster,  bookseller;  Nathan  Brooks, 
bookbinder,  and  S.  Dover,  printer,  for  printing  licentious 
books.     This  edition  iH  called  ( Jromwell'a  Bible,  as  it  appeared 


—  18  — 

in  his  time.  It  was  brought  out  through  the  instrumentality 
of  Vavasor  Powell  and  Walter  Caradoc.  Vavasor  Powell 
was  the  son  of  Richard  Powell,  a  tavern  keeper  in  Radnor- 
shire. He  was,  however,  a  descendant  of  a  noble  family, 
and  was  trained  at  Oxford.  It  is  said  that  he  was  never 
ordained  in  the  Established  Church,  but  that  he  secured  the 
position  of  a  curate  through  some  old  letters,  belonging, 
once,  to  an  uncle  of  his.  For  this  he  was  excommunicated. 
He  then  joined  the  Puritans,  was  persecuted  and  fled  to 
England ;  but  we  find  him  back  in  Wales  in  a  few  years 
after.  He  held  some  important  offices  in  the  church,  and 
after  leaving  it;  he  became  a  Baptist  in  the  year  1656.  He 
attacked  Cromwell  and  was  put  in  prison.  He  died  in  Fleet 
Street  Prison,  London,  and  was  buried  in  Bunhill  Fields. 

In  the  year  1671,  the  year  in  which  "  Milton's  Paradise 
Regained"  was  issued,  another  edition  of  the  whole  Bible 
was  printed,  and  six  or  seven  thousand  copies  were  dis- 
tributed. The  names  of  two  men,  one  a  Welshman  and 
the  other  an  Englishman,  are  connected  with  this  edition. 
Mr.  Thomas  Gouge  was  the  son  of  Rev.  Dr.  William  Gouge, 
of  Blackfriars,  London,  He  was  born  in  1605,  and  was 
trained  at  Eaton  and  Cambridge.  When  leaving  the  Uni- 
versity he  settled  \  in  Surrey  and  afterwards  removed  to 
London.  He  seems  to  have  given  up  preaching  for  a  time, 
since  he  could  not  accept  some  doctrines  which  were  bind- 
ing; when  better  satisfied  he  had  a  license  to  preach  in 
Wales.  He  travelled  much  throughout  the  country  and 
established  between  three  and  four  hundred  schools  in 
different  towns.  He  paid  for  the  education  of  several  poor 
children  himself.  In  the  year  1674  Gouge  and  Tillotson 
and  others  formed  a  society  for  the  spead  of  knowledge  in 


—  19  — 

Wales.  They  bought  some  thousands  of  Welsh  books, 
which  were  mostly  translations  from  the  English,  and  dis- 
tributed them  amongst  the  people.  It  is  said  that  Gouge 
only  had  about  §800  a  year  and  that  he  gave  two-thirds  of 
it  away.     He  died  in  1681  in  his  77th  year. 

Stephen  Hughes  was  born  in  the  town  of  Carmarthen, 
South  Wales,  and  in  all  probability  received  his  training  in 
his  native  town.  He  received  the  living  of  Meidrym,  but 
left  the  church,  or  had  to  leave  it.  He  labored  much  in  the 
counties  of  Glamorgan  and  Carmarthen.  The  editions  of 
the  Bible  which  were  printed  under  his  supervision  are 
considered  amongst  the  best. 

In  six  years  after  this  edition  was  issed  Gouge  and 
Hughes  failed  to  get  more  than  twenty  Bibles  on  sale 
throughout  the  kingdom.  Supported  by  Tillotson,  they 
brought  out  another  edition  of  eight  thousand  copies;  a 
thousand  of  these  were  at  once  distributed  to  the  poor,  the 
others  were  sold  for  something  like  one  dollar  each.  The 
book  contained  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  the  Apochry- 
phal  Books,  as  well  as  the  metrical  version  of  the  Psalms, 
besides  the  Old  and  New  Testaments.  It  was  printed  in 
London  by  "John  Bill,  Christopher  Barker,  Henry  Newcomb, 
and  Henry  Hills,  printers  to  His  Majesty,  the  King,  1677." 
Mr.  Stephen  Hughes  lived  to  make  preparations  for  another 
edition,  but  he  was  called  to  his  reward  before  the  work  was 
completed.  Mr.  David  Jones,  of  Llandyssilio  took  the  work 
in  hand  and  it  is  said  that  ten  thousand  copies  were  dis- 
tributed throughout  the  land.  The  chief  supporter  of  Jones 
was  Thomas,  Earl  of  Wharton,  who,  though  a  churchman, 
was  well  disposed  to  the  dissenters.     This  edition  was  issued 


—  20  — 

in  1690,  and  the  printing  was  done  at  the  same  house  as  that 
of  1677.  In  the  eighteenth  century  several  editions  were 
issued  by  "  The  Society  for  promoting  Christian  Know- 
ledge." Some  put  the  number  of  copies  in  that  of  1769 
at  20,000. 

In  the  year  1770  the  Bible  was  printed  for  the  first  time 
in  Wales.  The  volume  contains  notes  on  every  chapter 
written  by  the  Rev.  Peter  Williams.  This  was  the  first 
commentary  on  the  whole  Bible  ever  printed  in  the  Welsh 
language.  Eight  thousand  copies  were  printed  and  were 
sold  for  one  pound  each. 

The  Rev.  Peter  Williams  was  a  native  of  Carmarthen- 
shire. He  received  his  training  from  one  Mr.  Einon  in  his 
native  town.  It  is  said  that  he  benefitted  much,  in  his 
youth,  by  the  preaching  of  the  Rev.  George  Whitfield.  He 
was  ordained  a  deacon  in  the  Established  Church  and  was 
for  some  time  a  curate  in  his  native  county;  it  is  said  that 
his  vicar  dismissed  him  because  he  one  day  offered  a  prayer 
at  a  certain  house.  He  was  a  curate  at  Swansea  for  some 
time  after.  Williams,  when  preparing  his  notes,  made  use  of 
the  work  of  Ostervald.  Four  editions  of  Williams'  Bible 
appeared  before  the  end  of  the  century ;  the  second  edition 
appeared  in  1781,  the  third  in  1788,  and  the  fourth  in  1797, 
In  the  year  1790  Williams  brought  out  an  edition  of  the 
Bible  for  the  use  of  the  people  at  large,  and  made  use  of 
marginal  notes  prepared  by  the  Rev.  John  Cann.  He  seems 
also  to  have  altered  the  translation  a  little  for  which  he  had 
to  suffer  somewhat,  and  a  small  volume  was  published  in  his 
defence.  He  published  a  concordance  to  the  Bible  together 
with  some  other  small  books.  He  built  a  chapel  at  Carmar- 
then and  died  in  the  year  1796  in  his  77th  year. 


—  21  — 

There  have  been  in  Wales  during  this  century  some  fine 
biblical  scholars,  but  there  is  not  a  single  original  commentary 
on  the  Bible  in  the  language.     There  are  some  excellent 
commentaries  on  particular  Epistles  and  the  fact  that  they 
have  been  so  well  accepted  is  a  proof  that  there  would  be  no 
risk  whatever  in  publishing  a  first-rate  work  on  the  whole 
Bible.     Dr.  Edwards  of  Bala  tells  us  that  he  had  to  bring 
out  a  second  edition  of  his  excellent  work  on  the  Epistle  to 
the  Hebrews  "before  he  had  time  to  change  his  mind"  on 
any  of  the  great  problems  presented  in  that  wonderful  book. 
The  Bible  has  influenced  the  minds  and  hearts  of  Welshmen 
greatly.     And  all   who  are  aquainted  with  the  history  of 
"The  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society"  know  what  the 
Welsh  people  have  done  towards  sending  the  Bible  to  other 
lands.     May   the  British    Isles   be   buried   in   the   Atlantic 
Ocean  before  Wales  loses  its  reverence  for  the  Bible,  and 
may  those  who  are  just  now  blessed  because  of  the  revival 
of  learning  in  the  principality,  ever  revere  the  scholars  of 
three  centuries  ago  who  by  their  work  made  the  present 
state  of  things  possible. 


THE   MAGAZINES   OF   THE   18TH   CENTURY. 


TREASURY     OF     KNOWLEDGE 

OR 
WELSH      MAOAZINK. 

(PRICE  THREE  PENCE  ONLY.)     No.  i. 
Containing  thirty-two  pages,  viz. : 

I.  Eight  pages  of  Welsh  history,  from  the  time  of 
Cadwaladr,  King  of  Britain,  until  that  of  Llewelyn,  the  last 
of  the  Princes  of  Wales,  written  by  Caradog  of  Llancarfan, 
under  the  name  of  Brut  y  Tywysogion.  This  story  is  so  ar- 
ranged that  it  may  be  bound  together  when  it  is  completed. 

II.  Eight  pages  more  contain  reasonings  on  different 
subjects,  viz. :  About  contentment  —  on  the  Prince  of  Wales, 
the  reason  why  the  eldest  son  of  the  King  of  England  is 
called  so.  History  of  some  experiences  concerning  sowing 
wheat.  About  tobacco.  Advice  to  cure  issue  of  blood ;  to 
cure  palsy,  etc. 

III.  Eight  pages  of  poetry,  containing  epitaphs  on  print- 
ing Welsh  by  Sir  Lewis  Gethin.  A  song  of  praise  to  God  at 
the  end  or  beginning  of  the  year  from  the  English  of  Mr. 
Addison.  "  Colin's  Complaint,"  from  the  English.  Verses 
composed  to  a  young  lad}7  about  to  marry  a  drunkard,  by 
her  God-father.  An  advice  to  the  wealthy.  A  poem  from 
the  English  of  Dr.  Stogden. 

IV.  Eight  pages  of  home  and  foreign  news,  containing 
the  history  of  the  present  war  between  the  Russians  and 


—  23  — 

Turks.     Great  storm   in    England.     About   the    murder  of 
Powell,  of  Glanareth,  tfcc,  &c,  &c. 

Omne  tide  Punctum,  qui  miscuit  utile  dulci 

Lectorem  dehctando  pariterque  monendo 

Printed  by  I.  Ross,  and  sold  by  R.  Rhydderch,  at  Car- 
marthen ;  Mr.  Williams  from  Fleet  Street,  London ;  Mr. 
Cadel  in  Bristol ;  Mr.  Eddowes  in  Shrewsbury  ;  Mr.  Thomas 
Bowen  at  Llanfairmuall ;  Mr.  I.  Hughes  at  Niwbwreh, 
Anglesea ;  Mr.  William  Jones  at  Bala ;  Mr.  C.  Lloyd  at 
Aberystwith;  Mr.  Rogers  at  Abengaveni;  Mr.  Jones  at 
Brecon ;  Mr.  Savus  at  Cardiff ;  Mr.  Beedles  at  Pontypool ; 
Mr.  Rees  at  Neath ;  Mr.  Aubrey  at  Swansea  ;  Mr.  Wright 
and  Mr.  Jones  at  Haverfordwest ;  Mr.  Harries  at  Cardigan ; 
Mr.  N.  Watkins  at  Llanymddyfri ;  Mr.  Edwards  at  Llandeilo 
Fawr ;  Mr.  J.  Jones,  Bookbinder  at  Carnarvon ;  Mr.  Pugh 
at  Llanrwst,  Denbighshire;  under  the  White  Lion  at  Mach- 
ynlleth ;  Montgomeryshire,  Mr.  Rees,  New  Inn  a  Mr.  D. 
Efan  Henllan-am-goed. 

We  beg  those  gentlemen,  and  others,  who  have  old 
Welsh  MSS.  and  would  like  to  see  them  public,  to  send 
them  to  the  publishers  of  the  Welsh  magazine  to  the  care 
of  Mr.  Josiah  Rees,  Near  Neath,  R.  Rhydderch,  book- 
seller, or  I.  Ross,  Printer,  Carmarthen. 


In  the  same  year  in  which  the  Bible  was  first  printed  in 
Wales,  and  twenty-nine  3Tears  after  the  appearance  of  The 
General  Magazine  of  Franklin,  was  issued  the  first  Welsh 
periodical.  This  is  a  most  interesting  time  in  the  history  of 
Wales,  whether  we  look  at  it  from  a  religious  or  a  literary 
standpoint.  It  would  be  a  very  easy  task  to  name  thirty-five 
or  forty  men  who  afterwards  did  substantial  work  in  the  pulpit, 


—24  — 

or  through  the  press,  who  were  at  this  time  under  twenty- 
one  years  of  age ;  this  fact  is  by  no  means  insignificant, 
especially  when  we  remember  the  educational  advantages  of 
the  country  as  well  as  its  size.  Amongst  them  were  scholars 
like  the  Rev.  Walter  Davis  (Gwallter  Mechain)  (b  1761) 
who  took  his  B.A.  at  Oxford  and  his  M.A.  at  Cambridge  '•> 
Thomas  Charles,  B.A.,  of  Bala  (b  1775)  and  Dr.  W.  O. 
Pughe  (b  1759)  who  was  a  D.C.L.  of  Oxford.  David 
Thomas  (Dafydd  Ddu  Eryri)  the  father  of  a  generation  of 
poets,  was  ten  j^ears  of  age  at  this  time,  having  been  born 
near  Carnarvon  in  the  year  1760,  and  his  friend,  David 
Bichards  (Dafydd  Ionawr),  who  was  also  his  superior  in 
some  respects,  was  at  this  time  in  his  eighteenth  year. 
Christmas  Evans,  the  greatest  preacher  of  Wales,  was  a 
child  four  years  old.  Lewis  Morris,  of  Anglesea,  and 
Griffith  Jones,  the  founder  of  Welsh  schools,  were  dead. 
Hywel  Harries  was  wnthin  three  years  of  finishing  "  his 
course,"  and  in  the  same  year  in  which  he  died  was  born 
the  Bev.  Joseph  Harries,  the  editor  of  the  first  Welsh  news- 
paper. Daniel  Rowlands,  the  reformer,  had  twenty  years 
more  to  live,  and  Williams  of  Pant-y-Celyn,  the  author  of 
two-thirds  of  the  hymns  sung  in  Wales,  some  of  them  being 
among  the  best,  had  twenty-one  years  before  he  would  reach 
his  majority  in  that  world  where  all  are  kept  young  forever. 
We  must  not,  however,  be  misled  by  such  facts  as  these. 
The  spread  of  knowledge  was  not  general,  morality  was  low, 
games  were  popular  on  the  Sabbath  day;  the  masses  were 
ignorant,  and  consequently  superstitious;  but  the  battle  of 
religious  liberty  had  been  won,  and  the  country  was  able  to 
produce  men  who  were  the  means  of  giving  it  intellectual 
and  moral  liberty. 


—  25  — 

The  first  number  of  the  "  Eurgrawn  "  was  issued  March 
3rd,  1770,  and  the  last  number,  which  was  the  fifteenth, 
came  out  September  15th  in  the  same  year.  The  publishers 
complain,  in  the  last  number,  about  the  indifference  of  the 
people  and  state  that  they  had  lost  five  hundred  dollars  in 
the  enterprise,  which  meant  on  the  average,  a  loss  of  over 
thirty-three  dollars  a  month.  "This  work,"  they  say,  "was 
intended  to  amuse  as  well  as  to  instruct  the  Welsh  people ; 
at  the  same  time  we  wished  to  revive  the  old  glorious 
language  (in  which  we  as  well  as  our  grandfathers  received 
so  many  blessings).  And  we  hoped  that  all  the  descendants 
of  the  ancient  Britons,  loving  their  country,  would  help  us. 
But  we  have  learnt  our  mistake  by  experience,  for  some 
refuse  hospitality  to  the  books  which  kindly  knock  at  their 
doors."  It  was  a  bi-weekly  magazine,  each  number  con- 
taining thirty-two  pages,  and  were  sold  for  three  pence 
each. 

The  chief  editor  was  the  Rev.  Peter  Williams,  the 
author  of  the  notes  on  the  Bible ;  he  was  assisted  by  three 
or  four  others,  one  of  them  being  his  own  son.  Some  object 
to  the  fact  that  Eliezer  Williams,  for  that  was  the  son's 
name,  had  anything  to  do  with  the  Magazine,  as  he  was 
only  sixteen  years  of  age  when  it  was  published.  But  we 
must  remember  that  Eliezer  Williams  was  an  exception 
of  a  lad,  and  that  he  was  sent,  when  very  young,  to  the 
grammar  school  at  Carmarthen.  Tie  afterwards  studied  at 
Oxford.  It  is  said  that  he  was  a  great  help  to  his  father 
when  the  latter  was  preparing  his  notes  on  the  Bible,  and 
his  concordance,  the  first  of  which,  as  we  have  seen,  ap- 
peared in  the  same  year  as  the  "  Eurgrawn"  the  concordance 
appearing  three  years  after.     The  first  Welsh  concordance 


—  26  — 

to  the  Bible  was  printed  at  Philadelphia,  in  this  country, 
and  the  Rev.  Peter  Williams  acknowledges  that  he  made  use 
of  the  work  when  preparing  his  own.  Mr.  Evan  Thomas, 
a  poet  who  was  also  a  printer,  had  a  share  of  the  editorial 
work.  Evan  Thomas  was  a  native  of  Montgomeryshire. 
The  Rev.  Josiah  Rees  (see  bottom  of  title  page)  had  some- 
thing to  do  with  the  editing,  and  it  seems  that  he  was 
responsible  for  the  expense  of  publishing.  The  printing  was 
done  by  I.  Ross,  Carmarthen,  who  was  a  Scotchman  by 
birth  ;  he  knew  Welsh  fairly  well,  and  published  a  great 
many  Welsh  books  in  the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  Carmarthen  is  by  no  means  a  large  town,  but 
in  ancient  times  it  was  "a  place  of  great  strength."  Sir 
Richard  Steele  is  said  to  have  written  his  "  Conscious 
Lovers  "  at  an  Inn  in  this  place. 

That  this  Magazine  is  amusing  and  instructive  is  true, 
but  the  instruction  lacks  some  points  of  importance.  It  is 
very  little  church  history  we  get  in  it,  for  instance,  and  this 
makes  it  less  valuable  for  the  historian  than  some  magazines 
published  thirty  or  forty  years  after.  Neither  does  it  aim  at 
anything  in  particular,  but  we  must  not  criticise  on  this 
point,  as  it  could  not  do  this  and  live,  unless  that  particular 
subject  would  be  amusement,  and  that,  too,  of  a  low  order. 

But,  if  we  must,  in  the  face  of  the  fact  that  the  literary 
quality  of  the  "  Eurgrawn  "  is  not  high,  as  well  as  in  the  face 
of  the  fact  that  only  fifteen  numbers  were  published,  come 
to  the  conclusion  that  this  was  only  a  dream,  we  must 
acknowledge  that  there  is  a  great  amount  of  consciousness 
in  the  dream.  If  Wales  was  only  dreaming  it  was  dreaming 
that  it  was  dreaming,  and,  consequently,  was  on  the  point 
of  waking.  In  February,  1793,  appeared  the  first  number 
of  the  second  Welsh  magazine.     The  editor  was  Morgan 


Welsh   Magazine  or  Treasury  of   Knowledge. 

PART    FIRST. PRICK    SIXPENCE. 

For  February,  1793. 


Containing  the  following . 


How  to  learn  to  read     .  2 
A   letter   by   Owain    of 

Meirion 3 

Theology 5 

The  Scriptures  the  only 

rule  of  faith 6 

1   AM  that  I  am    ...  7 
History  of  the  progress 

of  religion      8 

The  value  of  religion  at 

death 15 

History  of  the  degener- 
ation of  religion  ...  16 
A  meditation  on  a  rivu- 
let      ib 

Search  after  truth    ...  21 

Anecdotes brd 

Prophesia  Sancti  Thos. 

Martyris 22 

Howard's  Biography  .    .  23 

Howard's  Eulogy    ...  23 

Dmlith's  letter  to  Beza  .  26 

Dudith's  Biography    .    .  27 


29 
31 


Calculations  by  E.  W. 
History  of  persecution 
First   Epistle  of  Phila-  . 

delphus 37 

Hints     for     preserving 

health 39 

How  to  cure  fever  ...    41 

Cuts,  colic ib 

How   to  grow  potatoes 

for  seed ib 

Concerning  government   42 
Concerning  Semiramis  .    45 
How   cock  fighting   be- 
gan   ib 

Questions 46 

Review  of  Welsh  books     ib 

TriAderyn* 47 

Poems  on  subjects  given 
by  the  Gwyneddigion 

On  the  life  of  man  .    .    51 

On  liberty 52 

On  truth 54 

The  sicrns  of  the  times  .    53 


Y  gwir  yn  erbyn  y  byd. 
Nac    ynddiried    ith    fyw,    ond    i    Dduw    a'i    ddisgyblion. 
—  Taliesyn. 


trkkecca 


Printed  in  the  year  1793. 


*Name  of  a  Book. 


—  28  — 

John  Rhys,  a  native  of  Glamorganshire,  South  Wales.  Tn 
the  "  History  of  the  Baptists,"  by  Dr.  Armitage,  we  find  the 
following  concerning  him  :  Morgan  John  Rhees  was  the 
Welsh  Baptist  hero  of  religious  liberty.  Born  at  Graddfa, 
1760:  after  his  baptism  at  Hengoed  he  went  to  the  Bristol 
Academy,  and  entered  the  ministry  in  1787.  Before  going 
to  Bristol  he  established  night  schools  and  Sunday  schools, 
far  and  near,  teaching  the  pupils  himself  gratis,  in  chapels, 
barns  and  other  places,  and  supplying  them  with  books. 
When  he  became  a  pastor  he  aroused  the  denomination  to 
the  need  of  Sunday  schools,  before  any  other  denomination 
had  taken  them  up  in  Wales.  Aided  by  others  he  founded 
a  society  in  1792  for  the  circulation  of  the  Bible  in  France, 
believing  that  the  revolution  had  prepared  that  people  for 
the  gospel.  But  this  work  was  arrested  by  the  Avar  of  1793. 
This  is  the  first  attempt  known  to  form  a  Bible  society  for 
purely  missionary  purposes,  as  he  connected  with  it  a  mis- 
sion to  Bologne.  This  failing,  he  left  France,  and  threw 
himself  into  the  effort  to  maintain  the  doctrine  of  political 
liberty  and  religious  equality  in  Wales."  His  "Cylch 
grawn  "  was  a  splendid  effort  in  favor  of  liberty.  It  praises 
the  American  Constitution,  and  holds  it  up  as  a  pattern  for 
the  people  of  Wales.  Only  five  numbers  were  issued,  and 
shortly  after  the  fifth  appeared  Rhys  had  to  leave  his  native 
country.  "Spies  were  put  upon  his  track  and  an  officer 
from  London  appeared  at  Carmarthen  for  his  arrest ; "  but 
he  escaped  and  came  to  Philadelphia  where  he  was  warmly 
received.  He  organized  a  church  at  Beula,  Cambria  county, 
and  died  at  Somerset  in  December,  1804.  His  monument  is 
to  be  seen  in  the  cemetery  of  the  First  Baptist  Church, 
Philadelphia.  The  following  is  a  copy  of  what  it  says  con- 
cerning him : 


—  29  — 

A  Tribute  of  Affection 

in  memory  of 

The  Rev.  Morgan  John  Rhees, 

a  native  of 

Glamorganshire,  South  Wales, 

Born  December  8th,  1760, 

who  died 

At  Somerset,  Pennsylvania, 

December  7th,  1804. 

The  patriot  desisted  from  the  service  of  his  adopted  country, 

The  Christian  ceas'd  in  this  tabernacle  to  groan, 

The  Preacher  of  Jesus  finished  his  testimony; 

In  1806  his  remains  were  removed  to  this  family  vault. 

From  whence 

The  Gospel  of  Jesus  Insures 

A  Ressurrection. 

"  Come  waft  on  high  !  "    The  heavenly  envoys  cry, 

We  wait  to  bear  thy  spirit  to  the  sky." 

We  heard  with  transport,  bade  the  world  adieu  — 

On  their  bright  pinions  up  to  heaven  he  Hew. 

Now  in  the  bosom  of  his  Savior  God 

He  finds  a  calm,  a  joyful,  safe  abode  — 

His  precious  dust,  here  mingling  with  the  ground 

Rest  hopeful  till  the  Archangel's  trumpet  sound  ; 

Then  fashion'd  like  its  Lord  the  soul  shall  see 

The  Mortal  put  on  Immortality. 

Adieu  lov'd  friend  —  soon  shall  our  spirits  meet, 

And  cast  their  radiant  crown  at  Jesus'  feet. 

A  complete  copy  of  this  magazine  is  in  the  possession 
of  the  writer,  and  a  glance  at  the  title  pages  enables  us  to 
see  that  these  five  numbers  were  printed  at  least  at  three 
different  towns,  viz.:  Trefecca, Carmarthen  and  Machynlleth. 


—  30  — 

The  first  two  numbers  were  printed  at  Trefecca,  which  is  an 
important  place  in  the  history  of  Welsh  Nonconformity  ; 
the  Welsh  Presbyterians  have  a  college  here  for  the  training 
of  ministers  which  has  produced  some  fine  scholars  and 
preachers.  Some  of  the  ablest  men  have  taught  here.  The 
present  president,  Prof.  Prys,  is  one  of  the  ablest  men,  and 
his  predecessor,  Rev.  D.  Charles  Davies,  M.A.,  who  was 
bracketed  with  Todhunter  the  mathematician,  had  perhaps 
the  most  analytic  mind  of  any  man  in  Wales.  The  third 
number  of  our  magazine  was  printed  at  Machynlleth,  which 
is  situated  near  the  mouth  of  the  Dyji,  on  the  borders  of 
Montgomeryshire  and  Merioneth.  Indeed  we  find  that  this 
number  was  printed  at  two  places.  The  name  Machynlleth 
is  on  the  title  page  on  the  back  of  which  is  printed  these 
words  :  "  We  are  sorry  to  have  to  complain  that  this  num- 
ber, taking  the  work  into  consideration,  is  not  all  as  well  as 
we  would  wish  ;  the  reason  is  this  :  it  was  printed  at  two 
different  places."  Whether  it  was  printed  at  Machynlleth 
and  Trefecca  or  at  Machynlleth  and  Carmarthen,  where  the 
last  two  numbers  were  printed,  we  cannot  tell.  Is  it  possi- 
ble that  it  was  printed  at  Machynlleth  and  some  fourth 
place  ?  If  so,  and  it  is  quite  possible,'  we  have  five  numbers 
printed  ;at  four  different  places.  This  gives  us  an  insight 
into  the  difficulty  of  bringing  out  an  excellent  periodical  one 
hundred  years  ago  in  Wales.  What  would  Mr.  O.  M. 
Edwards,  M.A.,  who  by  the  way,  "gives  us  excellent  liter- 
ature in  his  magazines,  and  who  seems  to  be  determined  of 
doing  justice  to  the  liberators  of  ^  Wales,  what  would  he 
think  of  changing  his  printer  every  month  ?  Morgan  John 
Rhys  had  to  do  this.  May  his  name  'be  ever  dear  to  his 
countrymen,  and  may  his  courage  be  theirs.  Who  was  the 
printer  at  Trefecca  who 'had  the  honor  of  working  on  the 


—  31- 

"  Cylchgrawn  "  we  do  not  know  ;  the  Carmarthen  printers 
were  Ross  and  Daniel.  The  one  who  printed  at  Machyn- 
lleth was  called  Titus  Evans,  and  he  was  a  native  of  South 
Wales.  Some  time  after  Evans  and  his  children  came  to 
America.  Welsh  periodical  literature,  as  we  have  seen, 
sprang  from  the  South  of  Wales,  but  the  North  has  done 
more  towards  perfecting  it.  The  chief  denominational 
magazines,  with  a  few  exceptions,  are  printed  in  the  North, 
and  perhaps  there  are  more  printed  at  Carnarvon  than  all 
the  other  places  put  together,  especially  this  is  true  if  we 
take  the  national  publications  as  well  under  consideration. 
Some  of  the  best  editors  of  the  day  are,  however,  from 
South  Wales.  God  deals  with  districts  the  same  as  he  deals 
with  men.  One  district  or  country  is  used  as  a  means  to 
accomplish  one  thing  while  another  district  is  equally  hon- 
ored in  the  accomplishment  of  some  other  work.  The 
North  of  Wales  produced  an  excellent  translation  of  the 
Bible,  but  it  was  the  eloquence  of  the  South  that  sent  the 
truth  throughout  the  country.  The  South  led  the  way  in 
periodical  literature,  but  the  North  has  done  more  towards 
keeping  it  alive  and  strengthening  it.  The  South  also  led 
the  way  with  the  newspaper,  but  it  was  men  from  the 
North  like  the  Rev.  William  Rees  (Hiraethog),  who  was 
from  the  same  place  as  William  Salesbury,  and  Rev.  Roger 
Edwards,  of  Mold,  the  father  of  Prof.  Ellis  Edwards.  M.A., 
Bala,  who  made  that  literature  a  power  in  the  principality. 
These  two  men  did  more  than  any  other  two  towards  bring- 
ing Wales  to  what  it  is  in  a  political  sense.  The  subjects 
treated  of  in  the  "Cylchgrawn"  vary  from  an  essay  on 
"nothing,"  by  David  Thomas,  already  referred  to,  to  one 
on  the  omni-presence  of  God.  Such  subjects  as  these  are 
treated:    History  of  Tithes,  History  of   Religion   in  North 


—  32  — 

America,  The  Duty  of  Keeping  the  Sabbath  Day,  The 
Testimony  of  Josephus  Concerning  Christ,  The  Value  of 
Liberty,  Notes  on  the  American  Indians  by  Dr.  Franklin, 
and  The  Execution  of  the  Queen  of  France.  We  get  some 
of  the  poems  and  letters  of  "  Goronwy  Owain,"  who  died  in 
America ;  Dafydd  Ddu  is  represented  by  some  excellent 
poems.  We  find  also  "A  poem  of  Gratulation  on  the 
marriage  of  King  George  the  Third,"  written  by  a  Welsh- 
man of  the  name  of  Edward  Edwards,  of  All  Souls  College. 

The  one  object  of  the  "  Cylchgrawn "  was  liberty.  It 
aimed  at  severing  the  connection  between  "  church  and 
state."  In  this  respect  its  aim  was  higher  than  that  of 
the  Welsh  Reformers.  What  was  paramount  with  them 
was  the  reformation  of  the  State  Church,  and  some  of  them 
remained  in  it  until  they  were  liberated  by  death.  The 
fact  that  they  created  a  denomination  without  aiming  at  that 
is  a  proof  of  their  ability  and  courage.  This  state  of  things 
was  a  source  of  trouble  for  Morgan  John  Rhys.  He  could 
not  tolerate  a  state  church,  but  some  influential  men  amongst 
those  who  had  left  it  could  do  so  ;  what  they  could  not  do 
was  to  tolerate  an  inactive  and  immoral  church.  In  proof  of 
this  we  may  state  that  the  Welsh  Presbyterians  as  late  as 
1834  passed  a  resolution  condemning  the  efforts  of  those 
who  were  aiming  at  disestablishment.  The  resolution  was 
proposed  at  Bala  and  that  by  the  Rev.  John  Elias.  It  is 
only  fair,  however,  to  state  that  this  denomination  has  done 
its  share  for  disestablishment  after  this.  Taking  this  fact 
into  consideration,  as  well  as  the  fact  that  printing  was  so 
so  expensive,  and  that  it  was  so  difficult  to  distribute  a 
magazine  throughout  the  principality,  we  do  not  wonder 
that  only  live  numbers  came  out.     But  the  work  was  not  in 


—  33  — 

vain.  It  may  be  rather  difficult  to  point  out  details  to  prove 
this,  but  to  rise  such  a  clear  strong  voice  as  this  in  those 
superstitious  and  cowardly  times  was  in  itself  a  triumph. 
True  words  live  longer  than  kind  words  very  often.  No, 
John  Rhys  was  not  a  failure  no  more  than  John  the  Baptist. 
He  had  a  mission,  he  delivered  it;  he  escaped  prison  and 
may  be  execution;  and  died  in  a  free  country.  His  example 
stimulates  young  Wales  at  the  present  time.  What  he 
fought  for  is  close  at  hand,  and  he  will  come  more  popular 
than  he  has  been. 

The  "  Cylchgrawn  "  was  issued  every  three  months  for 
the  first  year,  but  on  the  cover  of  the  fourth  number  the 
publisher  stated  that  it  would  be  brought  out  every  two 
months  during  1794.  He  says  "that  a  great  many  of  his 
countrymen  Avere  anxious  to  see  it  published  monthly," 
others  wanted  to  keep  it  as  it  was,  a  quarterly  periodical. 
He  strove  to  meet  both  parties  by  making  it  a  bi-monthly, 
but  only  one  number  was  issued  owing  to  want  of  support. 
Some  people  are  far  more  anxious  of  making  known  their 
views  concerning  how  something  should  be  done  than  of 
doing  what  they  can  to  further  what  is  being  done  ;  and  the 
majority  of  those  who  clamor  for  a  change  before  a  fair  trial 
has  been  made,  are  the  people  who  really  do  not  want 
anything  or  anybody  but  their  own  selves,  and  as  a  rule  they 
do  not  get  anything  else.  To  demand  is  easy,  but  to  satisfy 
the  demands  of  self-satisfied  people  is  an  impossibility.  This 
magazine  was  worth  its  weight  in  gold  but  was  sold  for  six 
pence  a  copy. 

In  1795  a  quarterly  called  "Miscellaneous  Repository" 
was  started  at  Aberdare,  Glamorganshire.  This  was  an 
Unitarian  publication  and  only  three  numbers  were  pub- 
lished;   the  editor's  name   was    T.   Evans  and   the    price    of 


THE     MAGAZINE 

OR 

TREASURY     OF      KNOWLEDGE 

For   the   year    1796. 


Containing 

Natural  and  Christian  Christian  Doctrines, 

Philosophy,  Biographies, 

Geography,  Deaths, 

Astronomy,  Home  and  Foreign  News, 

History,  Particular  Stories, 

Church  and  City  Songs,  Hymns,  and 

Knowledge,  Beneficial  Poems. 

Intended 

To  Spread  Knowledge,  Justice, 

Love  and  Peace 

Throughout  Wales. 

By 

D.  Davies. 

"  Gwell  gwybodae.th  nagaur" 

No.  I. 

Chester. 

Printed  and  sold  by  W.  Minshull. 

Sold  also  by  E.  Carnes,  Holywell ;  W.  Edwards, 
Oswestry ;  B.  Owens,  Carnarvon ;  I.  Ross  and  I.  Daniel ; 
Carmarthen  ;  and  by  the  booksellers  throughout  Wales, 
and  by  G.  Sael,  193  Strand,  London. 


—  35  — 

each  number  was  six  pence*  The  name  of  this  magazine 
is  given  both  in  English  and  Welsh  ;  this  fact  seems  to 
point  out  that  articles  in  both  languages  appeared  in  it. 
We  are  not,  however,  in  a  position  to  say  anything  more 
concerning  it  as  we  never  saw  one  of  the  number^. 

We  come  now  to  the  fourth  attempt  in  Welsh  periodical 
literature.  The  Geirgrawn  was  the  first  monthly  maga- 
zine in  the  language.  The  editor  was  the  Rev.  David 
Davies,  a  Congregational  minister,  who  was  settled  at  Holy- 
well, Flintshire.  Davies  was  a  native  of  Carmarthenshire, 
South  Wales.  He  was  for  some  time  in  Monmouthshire 
and  removed  to  Hobywell  in  1790,  where  he  remained  for 
about  ten  years.  It  is  little  we  know  of  him,  but  it  is 
certain  that  he  was  at  Holywell  in  1796.  There  is  an 
advertisement  on  some  of  the  covers  of  the  magazine  stating 
that  it  was  the  intention  of  the  editor  to  publish  a  trans- 
lation of  Luther's  commentary  on  the  Galatians  with  a  life 
of  the  author,  which  was  "translated  for  the  benefit  of  the 
Welsh  people  by  D.  Davies,  minister  of  the  Gospel  at  Holy- 
well." The  fact  that  the  "  Geirgrawn "  was  printed  at 
Chester  is  a  proof  that  Davies  was  at  the  time  in  Holywell. 
Both  places  are  within  twenty  miles  of  one  another.  He 
went  from  Holywell  to  Welshpool.  The  printer's  name 
was  Minshull  and  each  Dumber  was  sold  for  a  groat.  The 
first  number  appeared  in  February,  1796,  the  ninth,  which 
was  the  last,  appearing  in  October  of  the  same  year.  The 
nine  numbers  make  28S  pages. 

The  "  Geirgrawn  "  is  not  so  amusing  as  the  ti  Eurgrawn 
Cymraeg,"  neither  is  it  as  strong  and  pointed  as  the  inaga- 

*  I  lowland's  Welsh  Bibliography,  page  OO.'i. 


—  36  — 

zine  of  Morgan  John  Rhys.  It  is  more  serious  than  the  first 
and  more  tame  than  the  last.  It  falls  between  them  in 
quality  while  coming  after  both  in  time.  There  are  in  it 
some  substantial  articles  on  subjects  like  the  following,  viz. : 
"  The  Journeyings  of  the  Apostle  Paul,"  "  The  Officers  of 
the  Primitive  Church,"  etc.  There  are  some  valuable  his- 
torical articles  such  as  those  taken  from  the  works  of  Rev. 
Walter  Davies.  Some  interesting  letters  are  given,  one  of 
which  is  by  Morgan  John  Rhys,  written  to  a  certain  Robert 
Roberts,  living  at  New  York.  A  debate  was  carried  on  in 
its  pages  concerning  a  book  called  "  Seren  tan  Gwniwl " 
(Star  under  a  cloud),  in  which  the  author  labors  to  show, 
and  that  in  a  bitter  language,  the  injustice  of  kings  and 
rulers.  The  book  is  an  unwise  criticism  on  the  English 
government.  The  French  1  {evolution  gets  some  articles  for 
which,  it  is  said,  Davies  got  into  trouble.  The  numbers  are 
seasoned  with  some  anecdotes  and  advices.  Altogether  this 
was  a  sensible  attempt  at  annihilating  ghosts  and  witches  in 
the  land  where  the  story  of  Gelert  is  believed  by  the  masses 
to-day  to  be  as  much  a  fact  as  the  existence  of  Snowdon. 

There  was  issued  at  Carnarvon  on  January  the  10th, 
1800,  the  first  number  of  a  magazine  which  promised  to  be 
the  best  yet  published  if  we  look  at  it  from  a  purely  literary 
standpoint.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  this  first  number  was 
also  the  last  that  came  out.  What  the  cause  of  this  was  we 
cannot  say.  There  is  a  note  on  the  cover  which  shows  it 
was  intended  to  go  on  with  the  work.  We  have  seen  a 
statement  or  two  by  men  of  authority  to  the  effect  that  this 
was  printed  at  Chester ;  having,  however,  the  title  page  of 
the  number,  we  are  in  a  position  to  state  that  it  was  printed 
at  Carnarvon.     (See  title  page.)     David  Thomas  ("  Dafydd 


GKEAL,*  OK   MAGAZINE, 


TREASURY    OF    KNOWLEDGE. 


Arranged  in  four  parts. 

First  —  History  : 
The  History  of  the  ancient  Welsh  in  early  times. 
Secondly  —  Reasonings. 
Remarks  on  several  subjects,  together  with  some  strange 
things  in  air,  sea   and   on   land.     Moral  and  religious  con- 
siderations. 

Thirdly  —  Selected  poetry,  old  and  new. 
Fourthly  —  Home  and  foreign  news. 


By  several  clergymen,  poets  and  others. 


Carnarvon. 
Printed  and  sold  b}'  T.  Roberts. 

1800. 


Greal  means  the  same  as  magazine. 


—  38  — 

Ddu  Eryri ")  is,  as  a  rule,  said  to  be  the  editor.  This  is  the 
opinion  of  Rev.  Daniel  S.  Evans,  B.D.,  and  Dr.  Lewis 
Edwards,  in  one  place,  speaks  of  Thomas  as  the  editor, 
though  he  gives  in  another  essay,  the  name  of  the  one,  who, 
in  our  opinion,  ought  to  have  credit  of  being,  at  least,  the 
chief  editor.  On  the  inside  of  the  title  page  we  find  a  few 
lines  written  by  Thomas  as  an  encouragement  to  the  pub- 
lishers of  "  The  Eurgrawn  "  which  go  far  to  prove  that  he 
was  only  an  admirer  and  a  helper.  The  introduction  is 
written  by  "Ieuan  ap  Rhisiart,"  a  poet  from  Carnarvonshire 
and  the  author  of  one  of  the  most  popular  Welsh  hymns. 
This  hymn,  like  most  good  ones,  cannot  be  translated.  We 
venture,  however,  to  give  the  first  verse  in  an  English  garb. 

"  How  precious  to  me 

Is  faith  I  can  see 

In  death's  harbour  dark 

My  anchor  'twill  be 

'Tis  good  for  my  soul 

Beyond  riches  all. 

It's  object  will  hold  me  when  others  must  fall." 

We  believe  "  The  Eurgrawn  "  was  under  the  editorship 
of  "Ieuan  ap  Rhisiart."  Another  magazine  of  the  same 
name  was  edited  by  David  Thomas,  and  the  fact  that  he  was 
the  editor  of  one  periodical  published  at  Carnarvon,  which 
seems  to  be  a  revival  of  the  one  of  1800,  seems  to  account 
for  the  mistake  of  attributing  the  one  last  mentioned  to  him. 
Thomas,  however,  has  contributed  to  the  number.  We  also 
find  in  it  an  excellent  poem  (Awdl)  in  memory  of  Lewys 
Morris  by  Goronwy  Owain,  and  Dr.  William  Morgan  is  the 
subject  of  two  poems,  one  of  which  was  composed  in  1588 
by  u  Sion  Tudur;"  the  other  was  written  in  1560.  An 
historical  description  of  the  Isle  of  Britain,  and  a  chrono- 


—  39  — 

logical  table  taken  from  an  old  MS.  are  given.  The  Jewish 
sects  get  an  article  and  pseudo  teachers,  like  the  Essenes, 
get  another,  and  two  pages  are  given  to  the  Millennium. 
We  find  in  it  a  few  letters,  one  of  which  was  written  in 
America  by  "  Goronwy  Owain."  This  magazine,  had  it 
been  kept  alive,  would  have  done  great  good  in  the  princi- 
pality. The  fate  of  this  one  was  worse  than  that  of  one  of 
the  others  which  came  before.  Very  little  contemporary 
history  is  given  in  it.  We  have  now,  however,  to  give 
the  history  of  a  periodical,  the  chief  merit  of  which  lies  in 
the  fact  that  it  gives  us  articles  on  the  history  of  religion, 
the  minutes  of  different  associations,  and  letters  showing 
the  growth  of  Sunday  schools.  This  magazine  was  called 
"  Spiritual  Treasury." 

The  first  number  appeared  in  April,  1799,  but  the  first 
volume,  which  contained  only  six  numbers,  was  not  com- 
pleted until  December,  1801.  The  second  volume  was  not 
commenced  for  seven  years  after.  It  would  be  easy  to 
suppose  a  great  many  things  to  account  for  the  delay. 
Charles  during  these  years  was  busily  engaged  in  other 
work,  and  perhaps  he  had  forseen  that  it  was  an  impossibility 
to  bring  out  a  magazine  until  some  other  work  had  been 
accomplished.  One  thing  is  certain  :  although  eight  or  nine 
periodicals  had  seen  the  light  in  Wales,  not  one  of  them  was 
kept  alive  for  any  length  of  time.  Periodical  literature  was 
doomed  until  the  Sunday  school  became  a  power  in  the 
land.  Some  of  the  magazines  which  were  issued  soon  after 
the  establishment  of  Sunday  schools  have  come  out,  some  of 
them  without  a  break,  until  the  present  day.  Among  them 
we  may  mention  "  Vr  Kurgrawn."  1809;  "  Seren  Gomer," 
1818;  and  "Y  Dysgedydd,"  L822.  The  firsl  number  of  the 
second   volume  of  "The  Treasury"  was  issued   in    March, 


SPIRITUAL   TREASURY, 

FIRST    NUMBER,  APRIL,   1 799. 

Under  the  editorship  of  Revs.  T.  Charles,  A.B.,  and 
T.  Jones. 

The  publishers  promise  that  the  profits  from  this  work 
(after  paying  costs  of  printing,  etc.)  shall  be  given  to  support 
Welsh  schools  in  North  Wales. 


contents  : 

Introduction 2 

Part  of  a  sermon,  on  2  Cor.  II,  15,  16 5 

A  talk  Odegos  and  Tuphlos 13 

Minutes  of  several  Associations 

Bala  Association,  1790 22 

Bala  Association,  1794 2:1 

Denbigh  Association,  1794 26 

A  letter  by  Adelphos 28 

A  talk  between  Scrutator  and  Senex 30 

Questions  by  Eifion 37 

A  remark  about  sin  ..." 38 

A  letter  from  Mr.  Lewis 38 

A  letter  of  a  curate  from  Sweden 39 

The  Welsh  Indians 43 

A  story  about  one  Mr.  Ince 45 

The  duties  of  citizens 47 

The  persecution  under  Nero 49 

Religious  History 52 

A  letter  by  Dr.  Vanderkerap 56 

The  state  of  religion  in  France 57 

News 60 

Poetry 63 

Chester  :  Printed  by  W.  C.  Jones. 

Price  6d  or  11  for  5  shillings. 


—  41- 

1809,  and  the  volume,  which  is  made  up  of  twelve  numbers, 
was  not  finished  before  November,  1813.  In  1814  Charles 
died,  and  the  magazine  was  not  taken  up  again  until  1819, 
when  it  was  issued  under  the  editorship  of  Mr.  Simon  Lloyd, 
B.A.,  of  Bala,  who  completed  the  third  volume  in  July, 
1822;  the  fourth  volume  was  begun  in  March,  1823,  but  was 
never  finished,  the  last  number  issued,  which  was  the  tenth, 
not  appearing  until  August,  1827.  In  1831  it  was,  however, 
issued  under  the  care  of  Rev.  John  Parry,  of  Chester,  who 
had  been  editing  another  magazine  since  1818.  "The  Treas- 
ury" has  appeared  without  a  break  since  1831.  We  do  not 
mean  to  notice  only  the  first  two  volumes  in  this  essay. 
Indeed,  the  second  even  of  these  two,  is  outside  our  present 
limit ;  but  since  Charles  was  the  editor  of  both,  and  the  sole 
editor  of  the  latter,  we  shall  take  them  both  together. 
The  first  volume  was  edited  by  Revs.  Thomas  Charles* 
and  Thomas  Jones  of  Denbigh.  Jones  was  a  native  of 
Flintshire,  and  was  trained  for  the  Established  Church  ;  he, 
however,  joined  the  Presbyterians  and  was  preaching  for 
about  forty  years.  He  wrote  much,  and  translated  the 
works  of  Gurnal  into  Welsh.  He  died  in  1820  in  his  sixty- 
fourth  year.  The  printer  of  this  first  volume  was  \Y.  C. 
Jones,  Chester.  It  seems,  however,  that  Jones  did  not 
understand  the  Welsh  language ;  but  he  had  in  his  ofiiee 
a  man  of  the  name  of  John  Humphreys,  who  was  a  preacher 
with  the  Presbyterians.  It  was  through  Humphreys  that 
.Jones  came  to  print  so  many  books  belonging,  mainly,  to 
that  sect.t  The  name  of  Thomas  Jones  does  not  appeal-  on 
the  second  volume.;  Charles  by  this  time  had  a  press  at 
Bala,  and  the  printing  was  done  there  by  Roberl  Saunderson. 


*  See  next  essay. 

t  See  Rowland's  Welsh  Bibliography,  page  711. 


—  42  — 

Six  magazines  have  been  under  our  notice  without  mention- 
ing those  published  between  1809  and  1822,  and  we  find 
that  only  fifty  numbers  were  issued  between  them  all. 
These  were  printed  at  seven  different  places  by  nine,  if  not 
ten,  printers.  Three  others  appeared  between  1800  and 
1809,  and  between  the  three  only  fifteen  numbers  were 
published.  The  first  of  these  (1805)  was  printed  at  Lon- 
don;  the  second  (1800)  at  Carmarthen,  and  the  third  (1807) 
at  Carnarvon. 

"  The  Treasury "  was  sold  for  six  pence  a  number  and 
the  publishers  intended  it  to  be  a  quarterly  periodical,  but  on 
an  average  the  numbers  only  appeared  every  nine  months. 
As  we  have  already  said,  these  volumes  are  very  valuable  to 
the  Welsh  historian.  In  them  we  get  articles  on  such  men 
as  Walter  Caradoc,  Griffith  Jones,  Hywel  Harris,  George 
Whitfield,  Williams  Pantycelyn  and  Peter  Williams ;  the 
minutes  of  different  Associations  held  between  1790  and 
1813  are  given,  and  the  second  volume  contains  much  valu- 
able information  concerning  the  development  of  Sunday 
schools.  A  few  critical  articles  have  been  supplied,  together 
with  a  considerable  number  of  theological  articles  and  ser- 
mons; at  the  end  of  each  number  we  find  a  few  hymns. 
The  chief  aim  of  "  The  Treasury "  was  the  advancement  of 
knowledge  and  morals.  In  one  respect  it  answers  to  its 
title.  It  is  "spiritual"  as  far  as  the  matter  is  concerned, 
and  shall  I  also  say,  as  far  as  the  language  is  concerned,  for 
it  is  very  pure,  but  we  do  not  get  in  these  volumes  the  life 
suggested  in  the  word  spiritual.  To  be  candid,  they  are 
heavy  and  monotonous  reading;  we  would  almost  pro- 
nounce their  literature  narrow;  religious  liberty  is  hardly 
mentioned.  As  we  have  already  stated  the  battle  of  religious 
liberty  had  been  won,  virtually,  but  all  barriers  had  not  been 


—  43  — 

broken,  and  the  fighting  is  still  going  on.  "  The  Treasury  " 
does  not  recognize  the  fighters  only  in  the  way  of  reminding 
all  to  be  ready  for  death.  At  the  same  time  it  did  a  great 
amount  of  good,  and  if  it  is  not  very  bright  and  pointed,  it 
is  serious,  and  the  book,  like  the  man  that  is  not  sometimes 
serious,  is  hardly  worth  reading. 

These  magazines  of  the  eighteenth  century  were  with 
one  exception  edited  by  preachers ;  some  of  the  printers 
even  were  preachers.  Whether  the  pulpit  or  the  press  has 
the  greatest  influence  in  the  principality  is  a  question  much 
debated  in  Wales  on  platforms  as  well  as  through  the  press 
itself.  We  believe  it  is  difficult,  in  the  case  of  Wales,  to 
separate  one  from  the  other.  To  separate  them  in  one 
respect  is  easy  enough,  and  perhaps  easier  in  the  case  of 
Wales,  than  in  that  of  most  countries.  Matters  which  are 
much  debated  at  the  present  time  on  platforms,  as  well  as 
through  the  press,  get  very  little  attention  in  the  pulpit  in 
Wales.  They  do  not  get  enough  perhaps.  The  only  social 
question  which  has  been  thrashed  out  in  the  pulpit  in  Wales 
is  drunkenness.  The  Welsh  pulpit  and  press  are  in  this 
respect  separate.  Taking  this  into  consideration  it  is  difficult 
to  say  which  has  the  most  influence,  because  they  do  not,  in 
tin;  main,  compete  ;  it  only  remains  to  be  proved  which  does 
its  own  particular  work  best.  The  question  at  issue  is  con- 
sequently removed  from  these  agencies,  and  the  nature  <>/•' 
the  work  done  by  each  must  be  taken  into  consideration,  and 
since  the  nature  of  the  work  must  In;  considered,  therefore 
we  must  also  consider  the  nature  and  strength  of  the 
ohstacles  in  the  way  of  accomplishing  each  work.  When 
we  begin  to  analyze  in  this  way  we  find  thai  we  arc  face  to 
face  with  .:  greater  problem  than  what  we  thought.  At  the 
same   time   we   musl    remember  thai    the  vcrv  same  spirits 


—  44  — 

move  the  press  and  the  pulpit  in  Wales ;  at  least  this  has 
been  the  case  in  the  past.  It  will  not  be  so  in  the  future. 
The  preachers  of  Wales  have  been,  and  are  yet,  to  a  great 
extent  the  editors  also.  The  editor's  voice  is  that  of  the 
preacher  weakened  in  the  effort  to  utter  truths  which  he 
thinks  ought  not  to  have  his  attention  in  the  pulpit ;  as  well, 
perhaps,  as  in  the  effort  to  make  a  more  pleasing  sound. 
After  what  has  been  said  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that 
the  periodicals  under  notice  are  orthodox  with  one  exception. 
As  we  have  already  noticed  two  numbers  of  an  Unitarian 
magazine  were  issued  at  Aberdare  in  1795.  The  fact  that 
only  two  numbers  were  published  speaks  something,  and 
Welsh  Unitarians  were  far  more  numerous  then  than  what 
they  are  now. 

Welsh  periodical  literature  during  this  century  has  made 
substantial  progress.  It  is  very  often  said  that  the  old  maga- 
zines were  far  superior  to  those  published  at  the  present  day. 
This,  perhaps,  is  said  by  men  who  have  not  read  the  old  and 
who  cannot  read,  or  will  not  read  the  latest.  We  can  well 
understand  how  a  periodical  or  book  that  helped  one  many 
years  ago  makes  him  blind  to  the  virtures  of  the  one  which 
accomplishes  a  greater  work  for  his  son.  The  latest,  how- 
ever, do  not  make  us  all  blind  to  the  qualities  of  those 
which  enlightened  our  fathers  and  grandfathers.  We  love 
their  very  names  without  mentioning  the  names  of  those 
who  sacrificed  position  and  comfort  for  the  sake  of  the 
nation  which,  partly  because  of  what  they  did,  is  beginning 
to  make  its  power  felt  in  the  world  of  literature,  as  it  has 
done  in  the  religious  world. 


THE     FIRST     WELSH     BIBLICAL     DICTIONARY 


The  first  Welsh  Bible  was  printed  in  London,  the  first 
"Welsh  magazine  was  printed  at  Carmarthen,  South  Wales, 
the  first  Welsh  biblical  concordance  was  printed  at  Phila- 
delphia, this  couutry,  and  the  first  Welsh  biblical  dictionary 
was  printed  at  Dublin,  Ireland,  in  1773.  The  author  of  this 
book  was  John  Roberts,  better  known  as  Sion  Rhobert 
Lewys.  His  father's  name  was  Rhobert  Lewvs.  John 
Roberts  was  born  in  1731  and  was  from  the  same  part  of 
Carnarvonshire  as  Dr.  William  Hughes  and  Dr.  Richard 
Vaughan.  The  greater  part  of  his  life,  however,  was  spent 
at  Holyhead,  Anglesea,  where  a  grandson  of  his  lives  at 
present.  Roberts  showed  a  strong  desire  for  knowledge 
when  very  young,  and  considering  the  circumstances  that 
desire  accomplished  much.  He  was  not  an  able  man  ;  and 
was  not  enough  of  a  specialist  to  make  a  mark  in  literature. 
He  was  a  poet,  and,  though  his  poems  are  lacking  in 
imagination,  they  are  marked  by  good  common  sense.  He 
published  an  Almanac  every  year  for  forty-four  years,  and 
we  are  told  that  from  fifteen  to  twenty  thousand  copies  were 
sold  yearly*  Robert,  his  son,  was  also  a  writer  of  Alma- 
nacs, and  the  grandson,  already  referred  to,  publishes  one 
every  year.  He  is  the  parish  clerk  of  Holyhead,  and  is  about 
eighty  years  of  age  and  was  never  married.  When  we 
visited  him  he  made  us  a  present  of  half  a  dozen  Almanacs  ! 
and  showed  us  :i  bust  of  his  father,  who  was  an  able  man  ; 
he  talked  freely  about  the  subject  of  this  article,  but  we 
could    not    get    anything   of    importance    out    of    him.      His 


♦Welsh  Bibliography,  page  161. 


—  46  — 

memory  failed  him.  His  mental  powers  seem  to  be  of 
a  simple  order,  and  his  great  age  has  made  him  doubly 
simple.  Sion  Rhobert  Lewys  died  on  the  nineteenth  of 
September,  1806,  in  his  seventy-fifth  year. 

This  dictionary  contains  282  pages,  and  the  writer,  on 
the  title  page,  states  that  he  had  made  much  use  of  the  work 
of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Wilson.  There  is  a  metrical  introduction 
to  the  volume  containing  thirty-two  stanzas. 

There  were  two  reasons,  perhaps,  why  the  author  had  his 
books  printed  at  Dublin.  Pie  lived  at  Holyhead,  and  there 
was  a  heavy  tax  on  Almanacs  published  in  Wales,  but  that 
law  had  nothing  to  do  with  Ireland.  We  are  not  certain 
how  many  copies  this  first  edition  included.  That  the  Rev. 
Thomas  Charles,  B.A.,  of  Bala,  made  use  of  the  work  of 
Roberts,  when  preparing  his  Dictionary,  seems  to  us  an 
established  fact. 

The  work  of  Charles  appeared  between  the  years  1805 
and  1811,  and  he  states  in  his  introduction  to  the  volume 
that  the  Welsh  people  until  that  time  had  been  without 
a  Biblical  Dictionary,  and  jet  the  work  of  Roberts  was 
published  when  Charles  was  only  eighteen  years  of  age.  In 
the  year  1788,  fifteen  years  after  the  appearance  of  the  first 
edition,  the  author  published  his  intention  of  bringing  out 
a  second  edition.  In  that  advertisement  he  states  that  the 
copy  would  be  revised  by  "impartial  men"  before  it  would 
go  to  the  press.  We  are  also  informed  that  the  volume 
would  include  "  300  leaves,"  or  600  pages,  therefore  it  was 
to  be  much  larger  than  the  first.  He  intended  publishing 
a  specimen  of  the  work  if  there  would  be  a  call  for  a  thous- 
and copies.  We  have  seen  nothing  of  such  a  specimen  and 
the  probability  is  that  the  author  did  not  receive  encourage- 
ment enough  to  publish  it  at  that  time. 


—  47  — 

On  the  inside  of  the  cover  of  the  August  number  of  the 
Welsh  magazine  of  1793  we  find  these  words  concerning  our 
book :  "  We  also  think  that  the  Biblical  Dictionary  by  Mr.  John 
Roberts,  of  Holyhead,  will  be  published  in  parts  at  sixpence 
each,  the  work  to  contain  about  eight  parts.  Whosoever 
desires  to  help  with  this  work,  let  him  receive  names  in  his 
own  neighbourhood  and  send  the  names  to  the  superinten- 
dents of  the  magazine."  This  appeared  twenty  years  after 
the  appearance  of  the  first  edition.  In  a  few  months  after 
this  was  printed  the  magazine  was  given  up,  and  as  far  as 
we  know  nothing  more  was  printed  concerning  the  Diction- 
ary until  1799,  or  1800.  This  is  the  first  time  thai  the  name 
of  Charles  of  Bala  was  mentioned  in  connection  with  the 
work.  We  shall  translate  this  advertisement  in  full,  as  it 
partly  explains  how  the  work  became  known  as  his : 

"  Let  it  be  known  to  the  public 
that  the 
Biblical  Dictionary 
Is  ready  for  the  press,  consequently  we  desire  those  who 
would  like  to  see  the  work  going  on,  to  send  their  names  as 
soon  as  they  can  so  that  we  may  know  what  number  to 
print ;  for  we  do  not  intend  printing  only  a  very  few  copies 
above  the  number  of  names  we  shall  receive. 

This  book  is  likely  to  be  of  excellent  service,  especially  to 
those  who  only  know  Welsh ;  those  who  are  not  able  to 
read  the  Bible  in  the  original  languages  in  which  it  was 
written,  as  well  as  in  its  different  translations.  It  contains 
the  meaning  of  words  not  translated,  to  be  found  in  the 
Holy  Scriptures,  together  with  many  thoughts,  reasonings, 
words  and  phrases  translated;  collected  mainly  from  the 
Dictionaries  of  Mr.  Wilson,  Mr.  Bagwel,  Mr.  Simson,  .Mr. 
Bernard,  Mr.  Brown,  Mr.  Cruden,  etc.,  etc.,  also  from  the 


—  48  — 

Hebrew  and  English  Lexicons  of  Mr.  Parkhurst,  Mr.  Bates, 
etc.,  and  from  the  Greek  and  English  Lexicon  of  Mr.  Park- 
hurst. It  may  may  be  of  service  as  a  concordance  and 
interpreter.  It  shows  the  position  of  mountains,  cities  and 
their  environments;  species  of  animals,  trees  and  rocks. 
The  orbits  of  the  heavenly  bodies  and  their  sizes.  Sacrifices, 
feasts  and  Jewish  ceremonies. 

conditions  : 

I.  The  Avork  will  be  printed  in  the  same  letter  as  the 
Spiritual  Treasury,  also  the  same  paper,  and  the  page  will 
be  of  the  same  size. 

II.  Every  number  will  contain  six  sheets  which  will 
make  ninety-six  pages ;  price  one  shilling. 

III.  The  work,  we  think,  will  be  completed  in  six  or 
seven  numbers. 

IV.  Shopkeepers,  schoolmasters  or  any  of  the  public 
who  desire  to  help  in  the  work  by  receiving  names  will  be 
rewarded ;  for  every  twelve  they  will  receive  two  for  their 
work,  that  is  fourteen  in  the  dozen. 

The  first  part  will  be  put  in  the  press  soon.  We  intend 
for  the  whole  copy  to  be  edited  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Charles  and 
Mr.  T.  Jones  before  it  will  be  put  in  the  press ;  or  at  least 
one  of  them,  if  it  will  not  be  convenient  for  both  to  look 
over  it.  For  the  sake  of  those  who  are  not  acquainted  witli 
such  a  work,  we  have  printed  a  specimen  of  it  on  the  other 
side  of  the  page,  so  that  such  may  be  able  to  form  some  idea 
of  the  work. 

W.  C.  Jones,  printer,  at  the  top  of  Bridge  street,  Chester. 


We  give  the  specimen  referred  to  above,  by  comparing 
jt  with  what  is  given  in  the  latest  editions  of  Charles1 
Dictionary,  under  the  same  words  it  will  be  seen  that,  with 
a  very  few  alterations,  both  are  identical. 


RHAG-BRAUF. 

ADORAIM,  [nerth  y  mor~\  dinas  yn  Juda.    2  Cron.  11,9. 

AMANA,  [gwirionedd,  dianwadalwch~\  mynydd,  yn  ol 
barn  rhai  sydd  yn  terfynn  rhwng  Silisia  a  Syria,  ond 
yn  ol  eraill,  yr  hyn  sydd  debyccach,  mynydd  fcu  draw  i'r 
Iorddonen,  yn  rhandir  hanner  lhvytli  Manasse.  Can.  1,  8. 
Edr.  LIB  ANUS. 

AREDIG,  (1.)  Llafurio  'r  ddaear,  cwyso  'r  ddaear  i'r 
dyben  iddi  ddwyn  ffrwyth.  1  Bren.  19,  19.  (2.)  Bod  yn 
ddiwyd  mewn  galwedigaetb.  Diar.  20,  4,  1  Cor.  9,  10. 
(3.)  Ymarfer  a  thwyll  nes  cael  cospedigaeth  am  dano.  Job 
4,  8.  Hos.  10,  13.  Y  Pliilistiaid  yn  aredig  ay  anner  Samson, 
wrth  ddeilio  'n  dwyllodrus  a'i  wraig  ef,  i  gael  gwybod 
ei  ddychymmyg.  Barn.  14,  18.  Flangellau  creulon,  ac 
erlidiau  cas  a  thwyllodrus.  Sal.  129,  3.  Sion  a  erddir  fel 
maes,  sef  dinyftrio  'r  deml  ardderchog  yn  Jerufalem;  yr  liyn 
a  ddywedir  ei  gyrlawni  gan  Turanus  Rufus,  sef  cael  o 
sylfaeni  'r  deml  dynnu  aradr  drwyddynt.  Jer.  26,  18.  Mic. 
3,  12. 

BARN",  (1.)  Dedfryd  barnwr,  bradwriaeth,  ynadiaeth, 
1  Bren.  3,  28.  2.  Doethineb,  pwyll,  a  synwyr,  yn  galluogi 
dyn  i  ddofparthu  rhwng  iawnder  a  chamwedd,  Sal.  72,  1. 
(3.)  Y  cospedigaetb.au,  y  rliai  y  mae  Duw  yn  eu  rhoi  ar 
ddynion  am  eu  pechodau,  a'u  hanwireddau.  Diar.  lit,  28. 
Ezec.  13,  14.  (4.)  Llywodraetb  yfprydol  y  byd,  yr  hyn  a 
rod<lwryd  gan  Dduw  'r  Tad,  i  Grist  y  cyfryngwr,  yr  hwn  y 
mae  efe  yn  ei  reoli  mewn  perffaith  iawnder.  Ioaji  .r>,  '2'J.  a'r 
9,39.  (5.)  Ceryddon  a  thrallod,  v  rhai  y  mac  Duw  yn 
ddwyn  ar  ei  bobl  er  eu  profi  a'u  haddyfgu.  1  Pedr  1,  17. 
(0.)  Cymmedroldeb  Duwyncer  y  ddu  «'i  blant.  Jer.  LO,  24. 
Gwaithy  dydd  olaf,  yn  yr  hwn  y  gwir  brofir  |">'>  gweithred. 


—  50- 

Preg.  12,  14.  Judas  6.  (7.)  Deddfau  a  gorchymmynion 
cyfiawn  Duw.  Sal.  119,  7,  20.  (8.)  Y  gospedigaeth  a 
roddwyd  ar  Grist  am  ein  pechodau  ni.  Efay  53,  8.  Act.  8, 
23.  (9.)  Athrawiaeth  yr  efengyl,  neu  air  Duw,  Mat.  12,  18. 
Sal.  119,  7,  20.  (10.)  Cyfiawnder  ac  uniondeb,  Efay  1, 
17.  Luc.  11,  42:  (11.)  Gwaredigaeth  dynion  oddi  wrth 
lywodraeth  ormesol  y  diafol.  loan  12,  31.  (12.)  Arfaeth  a 
chyngor  Duw  a'i  drefn,  mewn  perthynas  i  genhedlaethau 
o  ddynion,  neu  bersonau  neillduol.  Rhuf.  11,  33.  (13.) 
Llysoedd  barn.  Mat.  5,  21.  (14.)  Egwyddorion  sefydliad 
meddwl.  1  Cor.  1,  16.  (15.)  Cyngor,  hyfforddiad,  addyfg, 
Cor.  7,  25. 

BERI,  \_fy  mab]  mab  Zopha,  o  lwyth  Aser.  1  Cron. 
7,  36. 

BETH-DAGON,  [ty  V  yd]  (1.)  Dinas  yn  llwyth  Aser. 
Jof.  19,  27.  (2.)  Un  arall  yn  Juda.  Jos.  15,  41.  (3.)  Teml 
Dagon  yn  Gaza.  Barn.  16.  (4.)  Teml  arall  yn  Asdod. 
Sam.  5. 

There  is  another  specimen  of  the  work  in  the  Traeth- 
odydd  [Essayist]  for  1856.  It  will  be  seen  that  there  is 
a  statement  in  the  advertisement  of  1799  or  1800  to  the 
effect  that  Mr.  Charles  or  Mr.  Thomas  Jones  [of  Denbigh],  if 
not  both  of  them,  would  look  over  the  copy  before  it  would  be 
put  in  the  press.  It  is  also  important  to  remember  that  the 
first  number  of  the  dictionary  came  out  without  the  name  of 
Charles.  It  contains  88  pages,  and  was  sold  for  one  shilling. 
The  substance  of  the  advertisement  already  referred  to  is 
printed  on  the  cover  of  the  first  number.  The  number,  it 
is  true,  was  issued  without  the  name  of  Roberts,  but  there 
is  a  note  on  the  cover  which  explains  this  omission.  The 
note  reads  as  follows:    "The  title  page,  together  with  the 


—  51  — 

introduction,  will  be  given  with  the  last  number  of  the 
book." 

It  is  evident,  from  these  facts,  that  the  book  was  in  press 
before  Mr.  Charles  had  anything  to  do  with  it.  There  is 
a  tradition  that  John  Roberts  sold  his  MSS.  to  Charles  for 
a  very  small  sum.  If  he  did  it,  it  is  hardly  credible  that  he 
also  sold  every  claim  to  it.  That  he  could  not  do,  for  the 
second  edition,  without  mentioning  the  first,  had  been  adver- 
tised for  over  twenty  years.  And  if  we  ought  to  attach  any 
importance  to  the  tradition  we  must  remember  that  there  is 
another  tradition  handed  down  by  the  family  of  Roberts, 
and  that,  too  from  his  time,  to  the  effect  that  Charles 
wronged  him,  especially  when  he  stated  that  the  Welsh 
people  had  been  without  a  work  of  the  kind  until  that  time. 
How  Mr.  Charles  could  make  such  a  statement  as  this  as  late 
as  1805,  when  the  first  edition  of  Roberts'  work  had  been 
out  since  1773,  we  cannot  understand.  How  Mr.  Charles 
could  make  the  statement  when  Roberts  was  still  alive  is 
a  great  mystery.  John  Roberts  was  alive  until  the  latter 
part  of  1806.  Is  it  possible  that  Mr.  Charles  printed  the 
statement  after  his  death  with  a  wrong  date  attached  to  it? 
We  will  not  go  as  far  as  to  say  that  he  did  ;  but  the  man  who 
could  mislead  the  public  in  the  one  case  could  do  so  in  the 
other  also. 

There  is  no  question  about  the  ability  of  Charles.  He 
was  a  fine  scholar.  The  work  under  consideration  would 
not  have  accomplished  what  it  has  done  were  it  not  for  him  ; 
but  it  is  a  thousand  pities  that  he  did  not  mention  the  work 
of  Roberts.  He  has  been  careful  to  point  out  that  the  Rev. 
Peter  Williams  made  use  of  the  Welsh  concordance  printed 
at  Philadelphia,  when  preparing  his  work,  which  appeared 
three  years  before  the  dictionary  of  John  Roberta.     Others 


—  52  — 

will  be  careful  to  point  out  that  Charles  made  use  of  that 
dictionary.     "There   is   a   power   in    the   universe     . 
making  for  righteousness." 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  Mr.  Charles  did  not  clear  up 
this  matter ;  and  we  must  ask  those  who  may  read  this  essay 
not  to  pronounce  a  judgment  on  the  man  and  his  work  until 
they  know  far  more  about  him  than  what  is  revealed  in  this 
place.  Though  we  believe  it  would  be  a  very  easy  matter  to 
prove  that  he  gets  too  much  credit  in  one  or  two  more  fields, 
he  was  one  of  the  greatest,  if  not  the  very  greatest,  Welsh- 
man of  his  time.  He  was  a  native  of  Carmarthenshire  and 
was  born  in  1755.  When  about  twenty  years  of  age  he 
went  to  Oxford  where  he  took  the  degree  of  B.A.  He  was 
ordained  a  Deacon  in  the  Established  Church.  In  1785  he 
left  the  Church  and  joined  the  Presbyterians.  He  is  closely 
connected  with  the  establishment  of  Sunday  schools  in 
Wales,  and  he  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  British  and 
Foreign  Bible  Society. 

Most  of  his  work  was  accomplished  between  1800  and 
1814,  the  year  in  which  he  died.  He  was  seriously  ill  for 
some  time  about  the  beginning  of  the  year  1800,  and  it  was 
thought  that  he  could  not  recover.  At  a  prayer  meeting 
held  when  he  was  in  a  very  low  state,  one  old  deacon  in  a 
peculiar,  striking  and  prophetic  manner  earnestly  beseeched 
the  Almighty  to  grant  fifteen  years  more  to  his  servant. 
Why  he  prayed  for  fifteen  years  we  cannot  tell.  Perhaps 
he  thought  that  Charles  could  not  accomplish  much  after 
reaching  his  sixtieth  year.  It  may  be  that  he  was  divinely 
inspired  to  ask  for  fifteen  more,  because  the  Lord  was  going 
to  grant  it.  When  Charles  heard  about  it  he  felt  better ;  in 
a  short  time  he  was  well,  and  when  the  fifteen  years  were 
up  he  died. 


A   FEW   BEAUTIFUL   HYMNS. 


Translations  of  a  few  Welsh  hymns  have  found  their 
way  into  the  hymn  books  of  the  English  speaking  people, 
ami  translations  of  some  of  the  best  English  hymns  are  to  be 
found  in  Welsh  hymn  books.  Such  hymns  as  "  Rook  of 
ages  cleft  for  me,"  "Lead  kindly  light,"  and  "Come,  thou 
fount  of  every  blessing,"  have  been  finely  rendered  into 
Welsh. 

Every  one  who  knows  anything  about  Welsh  life  and 
especially  Welsh  religious  life,  knows  what  an  essential  part 
of  that  life  the  singing  of  hymns  is.  Hymns  are  sung  at 
their  social  gatherings,  in  their  political  meetings  even,  and 
the  working  men  at  the  dinner  hour  and  after  supper  forget 
their  hardships  in  joining  together  to  sing  one  of  their 
popular  and  divine  "  emynan "  as  no  other  working  men 
can  do. 

If  the  conductor  or  chairman  of  a  meeting  in  Wales 
happens  to  be  a  singer  he  is  almost  certain  of  success.  In 
the  National  Eisteddfod  at  Aberdare,  South  Wales,  in  1885, 
there  was  a  great  disorder  in  one  of  the  meetings.  There 
were  about  15,000  present.  Some  minor  items  were  to  be 
gone  through  before  the  choirs  should  come  on  the  stage, 
but  the  crowd  was  impatient.  Some  of  the  leading  men 
tried  different  means  to  secure  order,  but  to  no  effect. 
.Mr.  .Matthew  Arnold  was  asked  to  speak,  but  to  the  great 
disappointment  of  some  of  us  he  left  the  platform  disgusted 
with  the  "  Philistines  "  after  uttering  but  a  few  words.  At 
lasl  some  one  began  to  sing  an  old  hymn  and  the  thousands 
joined  him  and  peace  ami  order  were  restored. 


—  54  — 

The  originals  of  the  few  hymns  given  here  are  amongst 
the  best  in  the  language,  and  as  far  as  we  know  translations 
of  the  first  three  are  not  to  be  found  in  any  English  hymn 
book.  The  author  of  the  first  we  give  was  one  of  the 
greatest  poets  of  AVales.  He  died  about  the  middle  of  this 
century.  He  was  a  clergyman  of  the  Established  Church. 
His  native  place  was-  Trefriw,  a  small  town  on  the  banks  of 
the  river  Conway  about  ten  miles  from  the  town  of  that 
name.  In  almost  every  hymn  he  wrote  there  is  a  reference 
to  the  "river  of  death."  The  Conway,  no  doubt,  was  to 
him  an  emblem  of  the  river  over  which  he  desired  "  to  fly 
to  Canaan's  side."  He  is  known  in  Welsh  literature  by  the 
name  Ienan  Glan  Geirionydd. 

On  Jordan's  banks  I  stand 

So  feebly  treading, 
I'd  cross  to  yonder  land, 

But  fears  are  spreading; 
Could  I  escape  its  wide, 

Its  roaring,  swelling  tide, 
And  fly  to  Canaan's  side, 

Beyond  all  dreading. 

Reminded  of  its  might, 

Most  awful  torrent 
Of  strong  ones  in  the  night, 

Sunk  in  the  current, 
My  soul  is  sure  no  more, 

Of  land  where  storms  are  o'er, 
Tbat  peaceful,  happy  shore, 

The  heavenly  orient. 

But  when  I  see  above, 

In  life  forever 
Old  comrades  saved  by  love 

That  faileth  never, 
Why  should  I  take  alarm  ? 

My  God's  almighty  arm 
Will  keep  me  from  all  harm, 

Whilst  in  the  river. 


—  55  — 

Mr.  Ebenezer  Thomas,  of  Clynnog,  in  Carnarvonshire, 
is  by  some  considered  the  greatest  "Welsh  poet  of  the 
century.  He  composed  the  hymn,  of  which  the  following 
is  a  translation,  on  his  death-bed  : 

0  my  Jesus,  ever  blessed, 
Thou  art  always  with  my  soul, 
In  all  griefs  and  tribulations 
Keep  me  high  above  them  all. 
While  I'm  tossed  about  so  helpless 
On  this  ever-changing  sea, 
Strength,  O  give  to  keep  me  clinging 
Through  all  changes  fast  to  thee. 

On  whatever  earthly  object 
Do  I  rest  myself  each  day, 
Under  me  the  land  is  trembling, 
Portions  always  giving  way. 
If  my  foot  be  firmly  planted, 
When  the  storm  of  death  shall  wake 
On  that  mighty  rock  of  ages, 
There's  a  spot  that  cannot  shake. 

In  the  morn  I  trust  to  kindred, 
They  are  gone  before  the  moon  ; 

1  rely  on  friends  so  loving, 
But  all  vanish,  O,  how  soon  ! 
Then  I  give  myself  to  fortune, 
In  a  day  her  smiles  are  o'er; 
Rest  I  then  myself  on  Jesus 
To  uphold  me  evermore. 

One  of  the  most  popular  Welsh  hymns  was  composed  by 
Rev.  D.  Charles,  of  Carmarthen,  a  man  who  has  not  been 
rightly  estimated  but  by  a  few  of  his  countrymen.  It  is 
almost  a  pity  to  attempt  to  translate  this  hymn  ;  our  love  for 
it  will  to  some  extent  compensate  for  the  lack  of  spirit, 
which  everyone  who  knows  the  original  must  feel  in  our 
rendering. 


—  56  — 

From  Salem's  hills  yonder  in  glory 

Our  wilderness  joruney  we'll  view, 
Each  turning  with  sweet  recollection 

Will  then  come  before  us  anew  ; 
We  shall  gaze  upon  storms  and  great  fears 

The  horrors  of  death  and  the  grave, 
But  we  shall  be  free  from  their  power 

So  happy  on  love's  peaceful  wave. 

Taking  everything  into  consideration,  we  think  the 
greatest  of  the  Welsh  hymn  writers  was  Ann  Griffiths.  She 
was  the  daughter  of  a  farmer  in  Montgomeryshire.  She 
died  in  1805  before  she  was  twenty-seven  years  old.  In  her 
youth  she  was  thoughtless  concerning  religion  "and  was 
fond  of  a  dance  and  a  song."  But  she  was  converted.  Her 
hymns  indicate  genuine  piety  and  there  is  in  them  a  depth 
of  emotion  not  to  be  found  in  Welsh  hymns  generally. 
Indeed,  she  did  not  write  her  hymns.  She  sang  them  into 
being  while  doing  her  housework,  and  the  memory  of  a 
servant  girl  preserved  them  for  us.  We  cannot  attempt  to 
translate  her  best. 

Make  me,  O  God,  like  to  a  planted  tree, 
So  verdant  by  the  waters  flowing  free, 
Its  roots  wide  spread  without  a  withered  leaf 
All  fruitful  'neath  the  showers  of  His  grief. 

Then  shall  I  bave  eternal  summer  day, 
The  crown  and  palm  which  Christ  shall  give  away 
To  all  his  saints,  in  glorious  realms  above, 
Divinest  favor,  brought  by  greatest  love. 


UNIVERSE  OT?  "  A  T  "Trn^"n  * 


LOS        CELES 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


Form  L9— Series  44  4 


UNIVERSITY  of  CALIFORNIA 

AT 


Cjaulorct  . 

PAMPHLET  BINDER 

Syracuse.  N.   Y.    1 


nia.  Los  Angeles 


L  007  597  059  0 


PB 

2207 

W67e 


^ARY  FACILITY 


AA    000  414  840    9 


